Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: USA Today Article on Silver Sage and Senior Cohousing

[Suzanne Marriott (smarriott2]

In considering the demographic from which senior cohousing draws, I think what 
Theodore Roszak says in his new book, The Making of the Elder Culture, is 
relevant: “As of the first decade of the twenty-first century in the United 
States, 8,000 people who were born between 1946 and 1964 – the baby-boom 
generation – began turning 60 every day.” In response to Bob Morrison’s post, I 
believe we have more than enough people to reach a “critical mass” for senior 
cohousing.  Roszak goes on to point out that as boomers reach age 60 they will 
have on average 20 to 25 years of life ahead of them, giving them a second 
chance to reshape history. He writes, “What boomers left undone in their youth, 
they will return to take up in their maturity, if for no other reason than 
because they want to make old age interesting.” So, not only do we have a large 
demographic from which to draw, a very large number of these people have been 
on the cutting edge
 before, and they know how to initiate change. Roszak posits that many of the 
counterculture values of the 1960s will become relevant to our emerging 
elder-dominated society. Roszak sees senior or elder cohousing as being quite 
possibly “. . . the most attractive alternative to the isolated home care and 
semi-adequate nursing homes that were the only options elders once had.”
 
I wouldn’t despair that there are only three senior cohousing developments in 
the U.S. at this time, for this is just the beginning of the senior cohousing 
movement, and it, as well as the reinvention of aging, is growing fast. Boomers 
are just getting started – again. For further inspiration and knowledge in 
these areas, in addition to Theodore Roszak book, I recommend reading Chuck 
Durrett’s new book The Senior Cohousing Handbook and Audacious Aging, edited by 
Stephanie Marohn for Elite Books.
 
I am a member of Wolf Creek Lodge senior cohousing in Grass Valley, California, 
or as we prefer to call it, cohousing for active adults. We believe in the 
power and practicality of aging in community and in pursuing a life-style that 
supports and protects our planet. Despite the financial downturn, our 
membership continues to grow even as we wait for the banks to loosen up their 
lending so we can begin construction. We have been in existence as a community 
for three years and, despite the fact that we have not yet begun to build, have 
23 of our 30 units sold. In the last two month alone, we have welcomed two new 
members and anticipate welcoming a third very soon.
 
Please take a look at our website to learn more about Wolf Creek Lodge. 
http://www.wolfcreeklodge.org.