On the air, she’s “JD The Diva” — spicy, bold and full of life, hosting a midday radio show for more than 100,000 listeners across Charlotte. Janine Davis built her three-decade radio career on big personality, quick wit and keeping things real — from her early days behind the scenes of the nationally syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show to her own heartfelt “Inspirational Moments” segment today.
But off the air, Janine faces harder moments that her listeners rarely hear about: the quiet, sometimes exhausting weight of caring for her mother, who is living with Alzheimer’s.
The Rollercoaster in the Dark
“The experience has been very much like a rollercoaster ride, but you’re riding in the dark,” Janine said. “You are never really sure what direction it will take.”
Janine and her family first noticed changes in her mother in 2018, when she was almost 80. A formal diagnosis didn’t come until 2020 or 2021, and it required the bold approach that JD The Diva brings to every microphone.
“Her primary care doctor would never formally diagnose her as having Alzheimer’s,” Janine recalled. “It was cloaked as ‘minor cognitive decline.’” Janine ultimately had to ask her mother’s neurologist directly — “Does my mom have Alzheimer’s?” — before further testing moved forward.
Embracing Her “New” Mom
Janine has had to learn to get reacquainted with her mother in this new chapter. “The ‘new’ mom is at times extremely stubborn and prideful and on a good day a ‘ham’ in front of the camera,” Janine shared. “I sometimes wonder if she was this way all along and I never really got to know her.”
Some of the new behaviors Janine saw — the sundowning, the repetition — matched what she’d heard about the disease. Other things caught her completely off guard: crying spells, depression and hallucinations.
One of the hardest patterns Janine navigates daily: her mother often wakes up looking for her own mother, who died 40 years ago. “She convinces herself her mom is still alive, until she realizes she isn’t,” Janine said. “That sets off intense crying and anger.” Each morning can mean reliving that loss freshly, as if it just happened . It’s a grief Janine now carries alongside her mother, again and again.
Nothing prepared Janine for how much harder the disease would become. “I would hear that about Alzheimer’s dementia, but never really believed it — until I saw it,” she said.
Still Finding the Good Days
Even with the hard days, Janine has found real joy in small rituals. “I love riding in the car with my mom. It relaxes her,” she said.
She often drives her mother to the neighborhood where she grew up, and her mom lights up recalling happy memories, like the time three adults and ten children shared a two-bedroom home. “Recalling those memories makes her happy, and me, too,” Janine said.
In all of their interactions, Janine hopes to honor her mother’s strength of character: her kindness, her grace and her ability to forgive. “She always prided herself on doing the right thing,” Janine said. “I credit her close relationship with God — one that she’s instilled in my brother and me.”
A Learning Opportunity Created by a Caregiver, for Caregivers
In this new phase of life for Janine, doing the right thing means helping other caregiving family members feel informed, supported and empowered.
“I understand now what it’s like to be a caregiver, and what it’s like to be overwhelmed, exhausted, not seen or heard — all in the name of love,” Janine said. That understanding led her to create the Raising Mama Caregivers Conference, now in its second year with the help of her family, her community and partners including the Alzheimer’s Association.
Raising Mama exists for caregivers like Janine, offering trusted information, practical tools, emotional support and a community that understands, before crisis hits. The conference features two tracks: a Foundation Track for those newer to caregiving, and a Next-Level Track for families navigating more advanced transitions and long-term planning.
“I think it’s important for the community to be aware of what life is like as a caregiver,” Janine said, “so if ever that day comes for them… they can have compassion, offer understanding, and more importantly, be prepared.”
That preparation, Janine has learned firsthand, matters more than most people realize: from long-term care insurance and estate planning to the everyday habits that protect the wellbeing of caregivers themselves. “I now know that exercise, eating right and social connection are critical to maintaining strong brain health,” she said.
This November, during National Family Caregivers Month, the Alzheimer’s Association® is proud to support Janine’s work by providing information, resources and educational speakers for the upcoming Raising Mama Caregivers Conference. Association-presented topics include understanding dementia, dementia progression and brain health at any age. Get more conference details below.
Raising Mama: A Caregivers Conference
Saturday, November 7, 2026
8:00 AM – 5:30 PM
Friendship Missionary Baptist Church
3400 Beatties Ford Road, Charlotte, NC3400 Beatties Ford Road, Charlotte, North Carolina
The Alzheimer’s Association will lead education sessions on understanding dementia, dementia progression and brain health at any age, presented by Deborah McMillan-Key, Senior Director of Community Engagement in North Carolina. An Association resource table will also be available.
