When Tamilyn and Bodo Liesenfeld first opened The Cordwainer
in 2022, they carried a question that wouldn't let them go.
How do we create a life with intention for people
with all forms of dementia, aligned with what their
goals and passions have always been?
They didn't see a market need for just another memory care
building, nor did they have to satisfy investor returns. "We were
creating something fundamentally different," explains Tamilyn,
"a place where people living with memory loss could discover
that their story wasn't ending but evolving."
Over the past three years, that question has been answered
through the remarkable stories of The Cordwainer residents,
validating the team's approach.
WHEN DREAMS WON'T WAIT
Barbara moved into The Cordwainer at age 87. In getting to
know her, the team learned that Barbara had a dream she'd
carried for decades: she wanted to row. Her husband had been
a rower, and she had never had the chance to try it herself. The
Cordwainer's Program Director worked tirelessly to make this
dream a reality for Barbara. Just a week after her 90th birthday,
Barbara's face radiated with joy and gratitude as she rowed for
the first time in her life.
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