Aging in Community: The Communitarian alternative to aging in place, alone

The prospect of aging, particularly in our culture rampant with ageism, is disconcerting, even frightening to many people. These feelings were the impetus for a small group of us to gather in 1999. Each of us had witnessed firsthand the distress our relatives experienced as they aged. The result led to the creation of Beacon Hill Village, one of several new communitarian approaches that emphasize friends and neighbors supporting each other as they age, rather than aging as a solo journey. Collectively, these new pathways are leading to a new paradigm known as aging in community—a grassroots movement of like-minded citizens who come together to create systems of mutual support and caring to enhance their well-being, improve their quality of life, and maximize their ability to remain, as they age, in their homes and communities. Aging in community promotes social capital—a sense of social connectedness and interdependence—enhanced over time through positive interactions and collaboration in shared interests and pursuits