Spring 2019:
Dear Neighbors,
For a few years, a small group of neighbors has been interested working on in establishing an “Aging In Place” virtual village in Oakwood, Mordecai, Oakdale and surrounding areas. We are seeking your input in order to meet the needs of as many neighbors as possible who want to be able to live and age in our neighborhood.
Aging in Place means a person makes a conscious decision to stay in their home for as long as they can with the comforts that are important to them. As they age, these may include adding supplementary services to maintain their quality of life.
The concept was initiated and first executed on Beacon Hill in Boston in 2001. The link is www.beaconhillvillage.org. Today, the Aging in Place movement is country wide, with multiple villages in all 50 states. The villages tend to be compact geographically to make services readily available. It is for this reason that we have limited our initial boundaries to a single voting precinct. In time, we hope to expand, depending upon interest and need.
We have established a non-profit corporation called Raleigh Village East (RVE). Our virtual village will provide services for those who want to be able to stay in our neighborhoods as we age by having the help of volunteers and reduced prices for services. We want to give members who are 50 and older and who live in our area both the practical means and the confidence to live their lives to the fullest in their homes/community.
Raleigh Village East (RVE) will allow us to facilitate a variety of in-home services for those who need them, such as giving rides to doctors’ appointments, grocery shopping, and helping with making homes safer as we age.
Depending on the demand for services, members of the village will pay an annual fee and, wanting to be sensitive to the financial abilities of all neighbors, we are looking for ways to support those for whom the fee would be a financial burden.
There is currently enough seed money to cover how-to guides from the Beacon Hill Village, other incidental start-up costs, and to establish incorporation as a non-profit organization. One of the strong recommendations from Beacon Hill Village is a community survey, and that’s where you come in. In order to get a baseline of potential needs and interests, please fill out our survey here: www.RaleighVillageEast.org/services.
Would you please tell us what, if any, of the services listed (some volunteer, some referred) you would like to see included? We ask that you think beyond your own needs and include those that you think your family and neighbors might eventually want to take advantage of as we all grow older.
Sincerely,
Betsy Buford, Mary Lovelock, Deborah Owens, Peter Rumsey, Sara Stohler, Anne Thomas, Katherine White and Barbara Wishy.
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