Seniors in cohousing get higher profile

The National Cohousing Conference held in Denver Aug. 2–4 gave seniors in cohousing a higher profile than previous conferences, thanks to our new Seniors in Cohousing Committee. The committee presented three sessions exploring different aspects of seniors in cohousing. It also hosted an early morning “Coffee & Donuts Meet & Greet” that attracted a nice turnout of folks bringing questions or sharing their community experiences.

“We were surprised to attract a high number of interested and engaged participants to all three of our sessions,” says Dyan Wiley, committee chair and CohoUS board member. “Ours were among eight sessions to choose from in each of those time slots. Out of about 250 conference participants, our sessions attracted between 25 and 30 attendees each.” 

Each session followed the same format — a set of content-rich PowerPoint slides coupled with four or five presenters from senior and multigenerational communities. The presenters addressed each session’s theme with anecdotes about their experiences as seniors living in cohousing and allowed time for lots of questions.

The format of the sessions was quite successful, Dyan says. Most participants completed evaluation forms and gave the sessions very high marks. In addition, most requested the PowerPoint slide decks, which they greatly appreciated. Email Seniorsincohousing@gmail.com If you would any of the three decks. They may also be available on the CohoUS website in the future.

Following are brief descriptions of the three sessions. The Seniors in Cohousing Committee hopes to repeat one or two of them as online offerings this winter through the CohoUS Cohousing Institute.

Matters of membership: orientation, resales and inheritance

This workshop addressed why it’s important for communities (both forming and existing) to have a structured orientation to help prospective members understand what cohousing is, especially senior cohousing. This is a crucial part of successfully incorporating new members, as it helps them determine whether cohousing will fit with their expectations and hoped-for living arrangements.

The session explored orientation approaches and shared strategies communities are developing to handle resales as well as issues around inheritance, which can add another wrinkle. All communities — senior and multigenerational — should think about how to deal with a unit that will be inherited after a homeowner passes away.

Mutual support approaches: exploring co-care, co-healing and other ways to support one another

Supporting our neighbors when they need help is called various things, such as co-care, neighborly care, mutual care, co-healing or mutual support. This workshop looked at several models and strategies — formalized and informal — for how members care for one another in senior and multigenerational communities. For seniors, mutual support is an essential part of successfully aging in place. For neighbors of any age, it can be a critical support for temporary health circumstances, such as recovery from an injury or surgery, birth of a baby, or being treated for short-term illness.

Communities need to be proactive and have agreements about how they will deal with a neighbor who needs more than informal support — who may need outside professional assistance or may even need to move to a care facility. Communities must make it clear to new and exploring members that they cannot provide assisted living services.

Starting an “aging in community” conversation

This session looked at how aging discussions are happening and how groups exploring aging are forming among members of senior and multigenerational communities. Such conversations connect members with each other to learn and share about how our bodies and minds are changing and how we can age well together. The fact is that everyone is aging — even parents raising children. Conversations about aging well in community benefit everyone.

The session looked at tactics that various communities have used, such as mortality conversation starters, lectures by local resource people and book groups. Other resources may include “Death Over Dinner” meetings and “Death Cafes.” Also covered was the impact of ageism on our perceptions and beliefs and how it may hold us back.

A recording of a previous workshop on the same topic is available on demand from the Cohousing Institute for $45 (or free for CohoUS members).

Category: Aging in Community

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