Who Are We?
We are a group of forward thinking, aging feminists endeavoring to create an intentional, self governing community model for affirmatively managing the joys and universal eventualities of aging, declining, and eventually, dying.
We share a love of the outdoors, animals, social action, community involvement, sustainable living environments, physical activity, laughter, learning, friendship, and a commitment to living lightly on the planet.
We intend to cultivate a community in which we each commit to the importance of our physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional health as we age, while recognizing the intrinsic limits of prolonging life beyond a normal course of health or life.
Our mission is to anticipate and provide for the changing needs of our members to grow old and age in place with the most vibrant, meaningful, and companionable quality of life.
JJ Firestone
JJ Firestone is a recent transplant to Weaverville, NC where she purchased a 3.5 acre mini-farm for the purpose of creating a model, 4 to 6-person, self-governing Cooperative for Vigorous Aging. She conceived this model during 17 years in hospice and geriatric social work and caring for her 90+ year old parents for the last six years of their lives.
She is also the inventor and manufacturer of Kiwi’s Climber, a modular floor-to-ceiling cat climber and scratcher that mounts to the end of a partition wall or doorway, and requires no floor-space, drilling, or hardware. Firestone owns the patent for this invention.
For 16 years she coordinated the artificial insemination program at a queer community health center in Boston as well as organizing other community services for queer parents, prospective parents, and their children.
During that time she conceived and raised her, now 32 year old, daughter, Hannah in a cooperative arrangement with Hannah’s 2 dads. For two years prior to her conception Firestone and the dads created a 35 page co-parenting agreement to supersede any “legal” definition of family. The success of this long-term arrangement, based on the written intentions of the three parents, inspired her faith and confidence in people’s abilities to establish and maintain enduring, deliberately chosen, and thoughtfully developed relationships and arrangements.
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