The Courage of Action:  Empowering Lessons from the Alzheimer’s Community

Dave Craig is a two-time cancer survivor, oncology researcher and patient experience champion. After 10 years of struggling to see his own cancer journey in the patient experience research he led for the pharmaceutical industry, he left to use his survivor heart and researcher brain to help other patients. In 2016, he co-founded Gryt (“grit”) Health, a digital oncology solutions company that empowers people to be in charge of their own health through connection, education and advocacy. At Gryt Health, he and his team of fellow survivors and caregivers, use their expertise and personal experiences to improve medicine development and access, while creating platforms to learn from and support the lived experiences of facing a diagnosis.

Russ Paulsen is known nationally as a nonprofit executive and innovator. Teams under his leadership have rejuvenated organizations, helped rebuild and heal communities across the nation, brought cutting-edge technology to public health and human services, and saved lives.

Russ joined UsAgainstAlzheimer’s as chief operating officer in 2019. Revenue and staff have steadily increased, enabling the organization to take on projects like a consumer-focused web platform that has brough 500,000 people information tailored to their specific Alzheimer’s journey. UsAgainstAlzheimer’s received its first-ever funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for outreach in Black and Latino communities; assembled a 100-organization coalition to set a national Alzheimer’s risk-reduction goal; and published rigorous research on what matters to people living with Alzheimer’s and those who love them.

Prior to joining UsAgainstAlzheimer’s, Russ was a senior executive at the American Red Cross. Among other accomplishments, he led the team there who created a campaign to reduce deaths from home fires; it has saved more than 1700 lives since its launch and made 1.1 million high-risk homes safer through smoke alarms and fire escape plans. More than 1.7 million kids have learned about fire safety through classroom presentations and an award-winning videogame.

Pamela Price is a Texas native with a passion for helping women and girls achieve everything they were created to be. For more than 20 years, she has worked with national and government agencies to develop and implement multi-faceted programs to meet the societal and cultural needs of women and under-served communities. As an exemplary leader with an innovative mindset, Pamela provides direction & support to multi-sector organizations in the areas of project design, implementation and evaluation, to strengthen their overall efficiency & capacity to deliver impactful & sustainable programs and services. She is a representative member of national committees, coalitions, and advisory boards, and excels in working with both public & private sector institutions to provide leadership and guidance on project development & management. Mrs. Price is a national speaker & educator, routinely sharing information & offering insightful viewpoints on issues ranging from mental health to HIV/AIDS to the psychosocial challenges of women leaders.

She currently serves as the Deputy Director for The Balm In Gilead managing the various health initiatives of the organization. Under her leadership, the organization provides support to faith-based and public health institutions in areas of program design, implementation, and evaluation, which strengthen their capacity to deliver programs and services that contribute to the elimination of health disparities. In addition to her role as Deputy Director, she also serves as the Director for The National Brain Health Center for African-Americans. In 2016, she co-developed a six-part educational curriculum for nurses and allied healthcare professionals aimed at addressing knowledge gaps related to Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias affecting African Americans. She also co-created and facilitates an accredited training for healthcare providers; aimed at increasing cultural competencies related to the screening, diagnosis, and treatment of dementia in African Americans.