Class at OLLI Asheville: Life Long Learning and Exploring the Option to Age in Community

September 10, 2015 by

This year, starting on September 25th, a series of classes will be held for older adults in the Asheville area to explore the various options that are related to aging in community. I have the privilege of kicking off the event by teaching the first class at the Osher Life Long Learning Institute (OLLI) in Asheville.

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OLLI was created many years ago and originally called The Center for Creative Retirement. It was developed because of the large influx of Boomers moving to the Asheville area to pursue their dreams of retiring in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Each class is presented by volunteer instructors and centered on lifelong learning and the expansion of the community that is already here.

Registration for these series of classes is open and available from now until October 6th.

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Filed Under: Classes and workshops, Collaborative Tools, Personal Preparation Tagged With: , , ,

How We Live Now: A Review

August 26, 2015 by

I usually save my favorite books for the holidays but this one was published just this week and I like to keep readers up with the latest news. Even though there are a plethora of books on my shelf that I could recommend this is the one I think you should add first.

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Like many of you, my life is always on the go so I can’t always find time in my busy schedule to sit down and read an entire book. But if you don’t read anything else, this is the one to pick up from Amazon today.

Here are a few reasons.

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Filed Under: Collaborative Tools, My Story, Resources for You, Your Story Tagged With: , , ,

Return to Elderspirit 2015

August 13, 2015 by

Elderspirit is one of the earliest Senior Cohousing communities in the country. It is internationally known and respected. My own journey would not be the same if it weren’t for the model that Elderspirit has provided for me and for this movement.

I recently had the wonderful experience of visiting Elderspirit with two friends from my community. My last visit was in 2007 so I was really looking forward to observing the changes and of course, looking forward to visiting with its Founder, Dene Petersen. I wrote about looking forward to my visit and looking back in a recent post here, if you want to see more.

When we arrived at the Elderspirit site we were able to witness the growth of landscape, the community, and its population — all changes from the last visit in 2007. It is both comforting and inspiring to see the seeds of this garden grown into colorful blooms, both literally and metaphorically.

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Filed Under: Cohousing, Community Spotlight Tagged With: , ,

Tiny Homes and Community Living: A Recap

August 6, 2015 by

The country, and the world, is currently enamored with the idea of tiny houses. Just look at the popularity of DIY Network’s Tiny House Nation, which documents the building of a tiny house from concept to completion in just one 45 minute episode. Asheville company Wishbone Tiny Homes has even been featured on an episode.

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I have not been immune to this concept. I have written about tiny homes as an option for aging both in community and in place. Several times I asked a local tiny home dweller, Laura M. LaVoie, to share her insights and for other installments I explored the possibilities myself. Let’s take a look at the tiny house resources I’ve shared on this blog.

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Filed Under: Collaborative Tools, Personal Preparation, Resources for You Tagged With: , , ,

Experiencing Elderspirit

July 30, 2015 by

My upcoming road trip with friends up to Abingdon, VA to visit Elderspirit inspired me to reminisce about my relationship and respect for what has been accomplished in that small town along the Virginia Creeper Trail.

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Marianne inspired at Elderspirit 2007

The inspiration behind Elderspirit spoke to me very early in my quest for my community.

The attraction of Elderspirit for me came from its Founder, Dene (Geraldine) Peterson. She often said the one of the goals for those in the community was to live there “to a good death” like her family members did. No nursing home but in the caring arms of your “family.” But for me and many like me, family is chosen and deliberate. This is what I mean by building community.

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Filed Under: Cohousing, Community Spotlight Tagged With: , ,

Flexibility and Red Flags: Trust Your Intuition

July 23, 2015 by

“They are not rigid and set in their ways. While they know what they want and think positively about getting what they desire, they remain flexible to what the circumstances require of them. “

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In my book, Your Quest for Home, I discuss the characteristics of a successful leader (quote from page 120). Flexibility is one of those characteristics. I believe that it is a key to success and a part of my consulting as the Grand Nudge and trailblazer on Aging in Community

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Filed Under: Consulting, Resources for You Tagged With: ,

Are You Ready to Make a Change? 5 Resources to Get You Started

July 9, 2015 by

You’re here because you want to make a change. You may be concerned about your options as you age or about having the right support network in place. It won’t be easy but the rewards are exponential. There is no time like the present to start shaping your future.

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Filed Under: Bettyz Playz, Collaborative Tools, Community Spotlight, Resources for You Tagged With: , ,

Happy Independence Day

July 2, 2015 by

I know we’re all busy with cookouts and fireworks to spend time reading a blog so I just wanted to take some time today to say “Happy 4th of July” for our readers in the United States and wish you all a safe and wonderful holiday.

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Last year, I wrote a little about the merits of having a community potluck to get to know your neighbors. You can read that post here.

Everyone’s been to a potluck party sometime in their lives. You bring a hot dish or a cold salad and add it to the impressive table of handmade food from everyone else attending. You want to try just a little taste of everything but soon your plate is overflowing with potato salad, broccoli casserole and barbecued chicken. These parties can really bring a community together.

What are you doing to celebrate the 4th of July?

Filed Under: Community Anywhere Tagged With: , ,

Aging in Place or Age in Community? Semantics?

June 25, 2015 by

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On this site I often like to make distinctions between certain phrases that I think make a difference in our perception of these concepts. For instance, I really hate the word “Elderly” and I think for good reason. Why does it have to be an adverb? Let’s just stick with “Elder” as a noun or just “older adult”.

In any case, the particular phrasing that I want to talk about today is “Aging in Place” versus “Age in Community.”

When you are done, be sure to check out our 2019 Aging in Community Update as well.

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Filed Under: Community Anywhere, Resources for You Tagged With: ,

How Do You Know if Aging in Community is Right for You?

June 18, 2015 by

Creating community isn’t just about finding people and moving into a house or a neighborhood. This is an important relationship that will influence everything in your future so you need to make sure that you’re right for it as well.

Book Launch

We know you’re here at Women for Living in Community because you are interested in alternatives to our culture’s traditional views of housing as we age. But community is not a magic bullet and it isn’t going to be right for everyone. So, how do you know if this is truly right for you?

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Filed Under: Collaborative Tools, Your Quest for Home Tagged With: , ,
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