The Synagogue Village Network

Consulting

May 4

The Synagogue Village Network is creating a new paradigm for engaging active older adults by promoting the Village model and providing support for faith-based communities to explore and establish Villages to meet the unique needs of active older adults.

The Synagogue Village Network (SVN) is here to support you, provide resources and work with you throughout the process. We have developed a toolkit which will take you through the stages of development and we are available for consultation as well.

The Village Movement started with Beacon Hill Village in Boston more than 15 years ago. In 2000, a group of twelve adults aged 60 and over started the nonprofit Beacon Hill Village, a grassroots, self-governing, self-supporting community. This unique Village arose out of community members’ desire to reside in their own homes while being able to access services that addressed their changing lifestyles over time.

Although every Village is different, each Village is based on a common principle that it will link older adults together to help one another stay in their homes and continue to lead active, joyous and meaningful lives. Villages are founded by members of the community (whether that be a neighborhood or a faith-based community), and each Village develops an organizational structure and offerings based on the needs of that community.

The synagogue is a natural agent for Village organizing, being the central Jewish communal institution and the repository of a set of values for living in community, honed over centuries.

ChaiVillageLA, the first Synagogue Village, grew out of simultaneous initiatives at Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills and Temple Isaiah in West Los Angeles. These initiatives explored congregants’ experiences of what many social scientists were describing as a new stage of life – the period between raising families/building careers and the onset of frail old age Together, these two innovative synagogues established a unique communal and multi-generational system of mutual support, where Village members provide each other with the programs, services and resources to enable them to live healthier and more engaged lives.

In 2019, the Synagogue Village Network was launched in response to ChaiVillageLA’s success. The Synagogue Village Network assists synagogues in creating Villages that harness the interests and passions of active older adults and meet their needs.