TORRINGTON – April will mark two years since Torrington resident Janice “Chink” Marsh passed away following a battle with Alzheimer’s. Her husband, Bill, continues to raise awareness for the disease in hopes to provide Goshen County residents free access to resources and information he never had.

In the latest of Marsh’s and the Goshen County Alzheimer’s Dementia Awareness Group’s endeavors, the organization is now accepting appointments for free memory screenings, scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 18 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Torrington Senior Friendship Center. Interested residents should call the senior center at (307) 532-2796 to set up a no-cost, 15-minute screening.

Bill and Janice Marsh were both originally from Alliance, Neb.

“She was a freshman, while I was a senior,” Marsh said. “I knew her, because you knew everybody – Alliance was a little bigger than Torrington. I went into Marine Corps for three years right after I graduated. When I came back, she was a ticket seller at the theater there … she had changed a bunch, looked a whole lot different than she did. At any rate, we were engaged in 1955, married in 1956, and when she passed away on April 29, 2016, we were four months away from being married 60 years.”

Marsh said his wife was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s approximately five years ago.

“I knew some things were happening, but I wasn’t that knowledgeable about Alzheimer’s and dementia – I’ve learned a whole bunch since,” he said. “It’s not just forgetting things, it’s misplacing them. You start to put those things together, and you can see there are other issues. The real problems begin with they don’t want to drive, socialize, or participate in activities they used to enjoy doing. We’re not real good at getting early screening, and part of that is the family is in denial.”

Marsh believes approximately 220 to 230 individuals in Goshen County are living with Alzheimer’s disease and/or dementia – most of which are at home.

“When my wife passed away, instead of flowers, we asked for memorials,” Marsh said. “With Chink’s memorial fund, we have purchased some books that are good for caregivers, and we hope to have two people from the college go to specialized training in Denver, (Colo.).”

Marsh is also working with local schools – both public and at the college level, the faith community, and retired nurses in the area to raise awareness and improve local resources.

“When I was first learning about (Alzheimer’s and dementia) with my wife, a lot of this information wasn’t available – maybe on the internet, but you have to go to 15 sites, and they might charge you $50 for a booklet – but what we’re doing is free,” Marsh said. “One of the things that need to happen more and more, in rural areas, you don’t have the resources you have other places,” he added. “You don’t have geriatric psychologists, neurologists, and you don’t have support groups and a lot of other things.”

Next week’s screenings will test memory and other thinking skills using a series of questions and/or tasks. Results will determine whether an individual might benefit from a comprehensive medical evaluation. The screening, itself, is not used to diagnose any particular illness and does not replace consultation with a physician or other clinician.

Early detection of memory issues gives people the opportunity to take advantage of treatments, whether they have a vitamin deficiency or thyroid problem – which can be readily treated – or Alzheimer’s, which may be slowed by early diagnosis.

“Depending on the number of folks interested, we may set up other screenings as we go along,” Marsh said. “When I was kid, if you lived to be 70, you were old. Lots of men (and women) today are in their 80’s and 90’s, and now we have the baby boomers all turning 65. We need to get a handle on (Alzheimer’s and dementia).”