Volunteer-driven senior villages take care of their members

The networks help seniors continue living in their homes by delivering services they can no longer do for themselves and help them stay engaged through social events.

"I think this is going to be the way of the future," said Berdeen Coven, a psychologist leading the drive to launch the Silicon Valley Village, expected to open by June. "There just aren't going to be enough private facilities for people to age in, and we have to get together and help each other out as we live longer."

What started with the first village in 2001 in Boston has become a fast-growing phenomenon that could fill a crucial gap as baby boomers age and longevity increases. By 2050, demographers project that 1 in 5 Americans will be 65 or older, part of a "silver tsunami."

The virtual village in Berkeley is one of 65 nationwide, with 120 more in the works. The volunteer-driven networks are meant to help seniors continue living in their homes by delivering a multitude of services they no longer can do for themselves and to help them stay engaged through social events.

Reporting from Walnut Creek, Calif. — When Bob and Lynn Forthman joined Ashby Village in July 2010, they never figured they'd need its services so soon.

Members pay yearly dues ranging from $35 to more than $900, with half of the villages offering discounted rates, according to a nationwide survey by UC Berkeley researchers.

In exchange, members are a phone call away from such free services as driving, gardening, computer help, home repairs, shopping and other day-to-day needs.

Village volunteers also help members sell homes that have become too large and move to smaller dwellings.

Also, vendors such as plumbers and electricians on a screened list offer discounted rates.

A month after the Forthmans joined Ashby Village, a driver ran a red light in West Berkeley, smashing into Lynn Forthman as she drove to her haircut appointment. The driver fled and was never caught, but the 86-year-old woman had five shattered ribs.

"I called Ashby Village and asked, 'Could you people be of any help?'" Bob Forthman said. "They said, 'Of course we could.'"

A geriatric social worker from Ashby Village warned Bob Forthman against transferring his wife from the hospital to a nursing home with a poor reputation and helped him resist pressure to release her until she was transferred to a better facility.

After Lynn Forthman returned home, she received discounted in-home care from an organization referred by Ashby Village.

"It's kind of like an insurance policy," said Bob Forthman, who retired as a professor in 1996 from what's now called Cal State East Bay. "They were there when I needed them."

But his wife of 60 years didn't survive the accident; she died several weeks later. Forthman, 86, said he wasn't sure he could cope. "I was simply not functioning very well. I honestly thought I might have to be hospitalized."

Three village volunteers visited him the day she died, bringing coffee, croissants, hugs and sympathetic ears. "For someone going through that experience, listening is what they want," he said.

Another volunteer who has since become a good friend helped Forthman write and publish a newspaper obituary and led the arrangements for Lynn Forthman's memorial service, including finding a rabbi.

Others helped hire vendors to prepare his large Berkeley hills home for sale and to find a condominium in an adults-only community in Berkeley. He now joins the numerous social events the village organizes, including hikes, potlucks, book groups and seminars.