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Village

Aging in place movement makes strides in suburban Detroit.

Lynne Meredith Golodner I Special to the Jewish News

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Under her leadership, the Village move-
ment has grown from 95 Villages in 2009
to more than 140 and
counting, with 120 more
Villages expected to open
in the next three years.
"The Village movement
in the past five years has
increased enormously
across the country:' says
Willett, 60, who lived
Judy Willett
locally from age 2 until
she married more than 30
years ago. "More than 25,000 people age 60
and above in 40 states are served by Villages
— 40 percent in urban settings, 40 percent
in suburbs and 20 percent in rural locations.
"Ninety percent of older people want to
stay in their homes for the rest of their lives,"
Willett says. "Villages are a common-sense
way to do that, providing community, exer-
cise, engagement and friendship. Really, the
Villages help us live a lifestyle we all want —
filled with meaning and people:'
Smith's job is to attract Village in
the Woods members from residents of
Huntington Woods, Berkley or Pleasant
Ridge. They pay $575 per year individually
($775 for a household) to join the Village
and receive services, programs and cama-
raderie to make it easy to stay at home as
they age.
She plans programs and fields calls from
members (currently about 10). She works to
build member, volunteer and vendor bases
all the time. Smith also has been invited to
members' homes to hang out, and she says
she always learns something.
At 89-year-old David Hoptman's
Huntington Woods home, Smith got a crash
course on jazz music, including a CD he
burned for her of Duke
Ellington music. A pho-
tographer/lecturer who
lives alone and has lived
in Huntington Woods for
25 years, Hoptman found
needed dental help thanks
to the Village. He turns
to Smith for "suggestions
David
about how to improve my
Hoptman
living conditions" to allay
symptoms of neuropathy.
A century ago, multiple generations of a
family resided in the same home or block,
with help for relatives built right into the

Chef Annabel Cohen with Shari

Smith, director of Village in the

Woods, at a culinary program

planned by the Village Mavens

family model. Around the 1970s, the retire-
ment center concept caught on and families
split, sending older generations to nurs-
ing homes and assisted living facilities as
women went to work and could no longer
stay home to assist as needed.
Today, there are choices, thanks to the
growing Village movement. That's great, as a
recent AARP study shows that 88 percent of
those age 65 and older prefer to stay in their
residences for as long as possible.
Debra Umberson, a professor of sociology
at the University of Texas who studies aging
and relationships, said in a Washington Post
article earlier this year: "The Boomers want
to stay independent — they want to stay
active and vibrant and connected ... and
that's reflected in their housing choices:'

Aging At Home
The Village in the Woods was launched
by Jewish Senior Life to be a community-
based, member-led organization serving
Huntington Woods, Berkley and Pleasant
Ridge. Its purpose is to support members

to age at home and in community through
concierge services, health, wellness and
social programs, volunteer opportunities
and neighbor connections.
Annette Lippman, 90 and a 50-year
Huntington Woods resident, asked Smith
for help setting up a medical alert system
in case of emergencies. "I still think I'm 50
until I try to get out of a chair; she says.
Lippman may use Village transportation
services for doctor appointments. With
fantastic health, Lippman started using the
medical alert system as a
precaution. "The Village
is a good program; it's an
investment:' she says.
"We believe in the
Village concept because
we want to give people
choices and opportuni-
Al=
Rochelle Upfal ties to live life to their
fullest, in a place they
choose to call home," says Rochelle Upfal,
JSL CEO. "The Village provides mechanisms
to remain in one's home with neighbors

and enhance life with services and a social
network:'
JSL started the local Village by hiring
Smith, with behind-the-scenes guidance
from Upfal and Barbara Giles, JSL associate
director. The Village in the Woods is intend-
ed to be a grassroots organization directed
by members, as it is now
The Village has received more than
$10,000 in donations in addition to dues
directly from community members.
The Village in the Woods joins a
Michigan Coalition of Villages that includes
Community Connections of Michigan
(through Presbyterian Villages of Michigan),
Heart of Lansing Village, Sharecare of
Leelanau, C2S2 Chelsea Community Senior
Services and a Battle Creek Village.
"The Village concept is unique in that it
can be molded to meet the needs of seniors
in any community:' says Peggy Vaughn-
Payne, executive director of the NorthWest
Initiative in Lansing. The Heart of Lansing
Village has been in the works for two and
a half years and will begin offering services

A Village on page 10

8 June 12 • 2014