About Us

Fort Worth’s first, finest and most comprehensive center for dementia care.

 

Our Mission

James L. West is a faith inspired, not-for-profit organization serving persons impacted by dementia. As a trusted expert, we provide personalized, innovative care and support for families, as well as specialized education for caregivers, healthcare professionals and the community at large.

Our History

 

The James L. West Center for Dementia Care is a not-for-profit organization founded on the love and compassion of Eunice P. West, who witnessed the devastating effects of Alzheimer’s disease on her husband, Fort Worth business leader and philanthropist James L. West. As a caregiver, Mrs. West understood the hardships families face, at a time when services for people with dementia were not commonly available.

To honor her husband’s memory, Mrs. West directed the James L. and Eunice P. West Charitable Trust, through First Presbyterian Church of Fort Worth, to provide major funding to build a nondenominational facility dedicated to the care of people living with Alzheimer’s and related disorders. The grand opening of the James L. West Center for Dementia Care in 1993 brought to life Mrs. West’s vision of a mission-driven organization that would assist the whole family from diagnosis to end of life, engage in meaningful research and share its knowledge with the community at large.

The Center’s philosophy of compassionate memory care and support serves as a loving tribute from Mrs. West to her husband and continues to guide the decision-making of the board and staff today.

25th Anniversary 

The Difference is Clear

James L. West Center a member organization of LeadingAge Texas, an association representing not-for-profit services and facilities for the older adults. The association is comprised of more than 350 members, including approximately 200 of Texas' finest retirement housing communities, assisted living facilities, continuing care retirement communities, nursing homes, and home and community based services providers.

Setting the Standard
Our nation’s not-for-profit housing, community-based, and long-term care service providers are on a mission. Their objective: to provide the highest quality and the most compassionate care to those they serve. By continuing a tradition of mission-driven, consumer-centered management and competent, hands-on care, not-for-profits set the standard in the older American housing and service continuum.

Mission-Driven Values
Not-for-profit organizations manage their financial resources in accordance with their missions. Many non-profit housing and service providers were founded by faith-based and civic groups from rich traditions, and their longstanding values are still reflected in their governance and management. They are not driven by daily pressures to increase the bottom line for owners, investors, or shareholders; quality, rather, is the barometer of a not-for-profit organization’s efforts.

Accountability
Non-profit organizations are accountable to voluntary boards of directors, who donate their time and talent to ensure that ethical management, financial integrity, and quality services are maintained. Non-profit finances are always open for public inspection, their information readily available on the internet. Non-profits have a responsibility to be active, contributing members of their localities.

Quality
Non-profit providers have a longstanding tradition of leading with quality. A review combining results from 82 studies that compared not-for-profit and for-profit nursing homes found that not-for-profit aging service organizations produced superior outcomes on several quality measures.