Options for Aging in Place are Becoming More Individualized
There’s an interesting global development in the world of aging and caregiving. It’s the trend of individuals taking a more creative and proactive stance about how and where they will age. Just like in the movie Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, people are exploring new and different ways to spend their retirement years, including what happens at the very end.
This is exciting because it means at least some people are becoming more practical about the fact they will definitely require more support as they grow older. Perhaps more importantly, more people are embracing the idea that making a choice early – before they need support – will result in more positive outcomes in the end.
Isolation with aging is one of the greatest contributors to decline, both emotionally and physically. In general, people are happier and healthier when they are part of something larger and feel a purpose in life, not to mention a sense of control. There are many reasons why finding ways to support aging in place is an excellent idea.
As anthropologist Margaret Mead said: “If you associate enough with older people who enjoy their lives, who are not stored away in any golden ghettos, you will gain a sense of continuity and of the possibility for a full life.”
There are a number of retirement communities – some quite developed – in Panama and Costa Rica among other places, offering warmer temperatures, cheaper daily living expenses, and adequate (and affordable) healthcare.
Other new-style retirement communities are built on the ever-powerful boomer culture and its sheer numbers. Case in point: Jimmy Buffett’s new Latitude Margueritaville over-55 communities, in development NOW in Daytona Beach, Florida and Hilton Head, S.C. – with a marina condo project slated for Sarasota, Florida.
People are also taking charge and organizing themselves to create their own smaller-scale, customized communities in which they can age with their friends – kind of like “do it yourself” aging communities.
In my home territory of Austin, Texas, several friends banded together and bought acreage to build what they call “Bestie Row” in the beautiful Hill Country located within 60 minutes of Austin. It’s a grouping of 4 tiny houses (each 400 square feet), designed with ecology in mind and with 1,500 square feet of additional communal space. Bravo!
https://lightersideofrealestate.com/around-the-home/architecture/tiny-house-bestie-row
On the east side of Paris, France (in a bustling urban section called Montreuil), French feminist Thérèse Clere saw her nearly 15-year dream come true at the age of 85 with the opening of the Baba Yaga House in 2012. A 5-story, self-managed social housing project run by a community of female senior citizens who maintain their independence while living communally, the Baba Yaga House is made up of 25 independent flats. Although sadly Thérèse passed away in 2016, her legacy lives on.
At the time called the “retirement anti-home,” the term “Baba Yaga” comes from the Slavic mythical wild women or dark ladies of magic. (Don’t worry: some have said that the more modern definition is that of a woman who chooses her own way.)
There are several more of these state-funded, self-run developments underway in France, and also one up and running in Toronto, Canada. Said Thérèse: “I’m 84, but what time I have left is going to be happy and fulfilled, I’m sure of that. Old age isn’t about being shipwrecked. It isn’t an illness. It can be beautiful, and I plan to live it that way, with my friends and colleagues here.”
There are also advancements in the way that society is galvanizing itself to support the idea of aging in place. Whether it’s a physical or virtual community, Village to Village Network (VtVN for short) helps connect those who wish to live on their own independently with the services and support they need as they grow older, through what some have called the “Village Movement.”
There are reportedly over 300 villages now in the US (and a few overseas), and the number is growing. Each is governed by a board of directors made up of members, and dues are paid by members to support paid staff to source, screen and deliver services. Much of the work is fulfilled by volunteers (often younger-aged members of the community, who may be, for example, baby boomer aged) – including rides to medical appointments, small fix-it jobs, or even just a visit to check in and make sure an older community member is doing okay.
One hallmark of village life is its design to be inter-generational – in other words, being a part of the larger community, too. The benefits of membership are decreased isolation, increased independence, and enhanced purpose of life.
You can see what types of villages are in your locale by checking out the locator map at VtVN (remember some are virtual networks through which services are provided over a wide geographic area, while others are more geographically defined):
http://www.vtvnetwork.org/content.aspx?page_id=1905&club_id=691012
If there is no village in your locale, the website also provides guidance on how you can start your own!