November 27, 2020 Newsletter

Let's get to know each other.
Attend our virtual Meet & Greet
on December 15. See details below.
www.villagehearthcohousing.com

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(in Durham, NC) and our members.

In This Issue

Sold out!
Celebrations in Community
- Election
- Dance Party
- Thanksgiving
- Halloween
See more of our adventures on Facebook
Meet & Greet Info Session Dec 15 (6pm)

Our Common House mantel is decorated for fall.

Village Hearth Cohousing is SOLD OUT!

We at Village Hearth are delighted to announce that we are now fully SOLD OUT! Our last home closed this month. What an adventure it is to get to know the homeowners, from all over North America, who have now become our neighbors and friends, including the final six households who joined during the pandemic!

It’s been fun watching each new homeowner move in and begin to personalize their home. In the spirit of: REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE, when someone finds an item that doesn’t suit their Village Hearth home, there is a space in the Common House where “excess items” can be left only to become a “found treasure” in someone else’s home.

We are beginning to individualize our front yards and porches. Edible gardens, gnomes and flamingos have appeared in addition to the critters who belong here including deer, rabbits, foxes, turtles, owls, blue herons, geese, and more.

This has been an amazing journey over the past 5+ years. We hope that, once it is safe to travel, many of our family and friends from away will find their way to Durham to experience our little village.

Celebrations in Community

Everything is sweeter when celebrated people one cares about. We have birthday and holiday events, but one recent event truly stands out.

On Saturday November 7, around 12:30 EST, someone listening to the news learned that Joe Biden had been awarded the vote in Pennsylvania, and therefore the Presidency was going to be his. The news spread through Village Hearth like wildfire. People came out of their homes, jumping for joy and yelling.

Soon, bottles of champagne appeared, a motley assortment of cups and glasses. Corks were popping. A crowd had gathered up in front of Building 3. Linda went home and got a container of truffles in one hand, shortbread in the other. Thirty minutes later, Pat & Margaret appeared, returning from a month-long vacation to join the exuberant gathering.

A truly spontaneous moment of glee pervaded the Hearth, as Tony quoted the famous line from Gerald Ford: “Our long national nightmare is over.”

The neighbours poured from their homes to celebrate together, with delight and a huge sigh of relief.

Dance Party

The weather is cooling down and it's getting a little chilly to sit outside, but we still look for opportunities to enjoy each other's company in covid-safe ways. So, last week there was an afternoon Dance Party!

Barb set up her sound system and served as DJ, and neighbours came out to get some social exercise.

Nan pointed out the importance of such events from as a way to promote social integration while still maintaining safe distance and other following other covid guidance. According to the CDC, social Isolation in older people increases illnesses related to mortality by an average of 30%. So to keep healthy, we must remain interactive, while being COVID compliant.

And, she also noted, there is an even steeper tradition for an afternoon dance in our community.

As the nation's first 55+LGBTQA cohousing community, it is good to reflect on the history of the "tea dance." Prior to the Stonewall Riots, "it was illegal for bars to knowingly sell alcohol to homosexuals and many of the venues there were not licensed as ‘night clubs’ or to sell alcohol. To avoid attracting attention, afternoon tea dances were promoted." Times have changed, but it is good to take stock from time to time and look back on that history, and honor those who fought to gain us the rights we enjoy today.

Fun, socializing, a history lesson, and exercise, all wrapped up in one delightful package!

Converging at one of our Gathering Nodes for the Dance Party. Separate households had their own spots, with plenty of distance in between to keep safe.

Tony & Dona claim their spot.

Patricia shows off her moves.

Nancy was the official artist, creating chalk drawings and instructions for designated spaces to keep properly distanced.

The First Halloween at Village Hearth

Halloween at Village Hearth. Little girls dressed in princess costumes. Children donning Black Panther outfits and costumed heroes from a dizzying variety of comic book movies. Adults from Village Hearth dressed as devils, ringmasters, witches and sharks. It’s hard to say who had more fun getting into something extravagant.

Costumed Village Hearth members, stationed at the top of Buttonbush Drive, distributed wrapped candies and cookies to all children coming from Eno Trace and beyond. Holly wrote a Halloween song, and the assembled costumed crowd belted it out whenever a child neared.

Neighbours gathered outdoors (masked and socially distanced of course) on the Common House patio to carve jack-o-lanterns. We have some artists among us!

Carol and Kim show their devilish side. Picasso looks like he is used to this!

Dona looking fabulous

Nancy is a Shark. Love the coordinating mask-in-a-mask.

Village Hearth is full of creative and colorful people!

Happy Halloween to all!

Would you like to join us?

All 28 homes have now been purchased, and we have opened a waiting list for those who want to be notified of any homes that come available. We are reducing our schedule of outreach from previous levels, but we still plan to offer a few opportunities to learn more about America's first and only LGBTQ-focussed 55+ cohousing community.

Visit Virtually ...

You can still join us for an online Meet & Greet via Zoom. You can socialize with some of our members, and we'll answer your questions about cohousing and Village Hearth.

Upcoming Online Meet & Greet Events:

Tuesday, December 15, 6:00pm Eastern Time

To register (or to apply to join our Wait List), please email Pat at VillageHearthCohousing@gmail.com or call Margaret at 561-714-8009.

If you like what you see, you may be invited to follow up by joining in our Zoom Coffee Hours.

This is such an exciting time to join Village Hearth Cohousing, while everything is built and ready to move into, but you can still be a part of the process of defining how our community will operate.

...or In Person

We are welcoming visitors to tour the community and any available homes, by prior arrangement. We follow all COVID-19 guidelines for real estate, so wearing a mask and observing social distancing are absolutely required for everyone's safety.

More Village Hearth Adventures - See Our Facebook Page

Have you seen our recent Facebook posts?

Fire pit evenings
Building a storage are for kayaks, gardening gear
Sunday Hiking Group visit to Bobbit's Hole on the Eno
Kayaking on the Eno River
Dogs of Village Hearth

You don't need a Facebook account to view our page: www.facebook.com/villagehearthcohousing

And of course, you can always learn more on the Village Hearth Cohousing website!

About Village Hearth

COMMUNITY
- 55+ LGBTQ (and allies) cohousing community
- 28 condos attached in quads
- 2605 sq ft Common House (co-owned by all Members)

Kitchen, dining/meeting
Sitting / game room
Laundry, exercise, craft rooms

- 15 acres, approximately 10 acres are undeveloped
- Electric car charging station
- 450 sq ft workshop
- Planned dog park, art studio, community garden
- Planned walking trails through our woods, meditation garden, chickens, beehives

HOMES
Single story / no-barrier entry
- Vaulted ceilings / skylight
- Accessible bathroom w/ roll-in shower
- Covered front porch
- Generous closets
- City water / sewer
- Electric water heater / heat pump / central air
- 2 parking spaces per household
- HOA dues $357 / $413 per month includes: water / sewer / trash / recycling; cable / internet; pest and termite control. Also ongoing maintenance of: Common House, grounds, exteriors and roofs of homes; parking, sidewalks; stormwater pond. Insurance of common areas including as-built home replacement. Minimum 30% Reserve Fund.
- Architecture by Charles Durrett, internationally known designer of cohousing communities

LOCATION
- 15 minutes to downtown Durham, 9th Street, Duke University Medical Center
- 1 - 3 miles to grocery, pharmacy, gym, library, post office
- 4.5 miles to Duke Regional Hospital
- 1/4 mile to Mountains to Sea Trail along the Eno River
- 2 miles to West Point on the Eno park
- 3 miles to Penny's Bend Nature Preserve
- under 30 minutes to Raleigh International airport (RDU)