The Community Without Walls (CWW) is an association of individuals and couples who desire, and actively seek, ways to remain in their communities as they age. The mission of CWW is to enhance the ability of its members to age well, and to age "in place." "Place" initially means each member's current residence, and subsequently other residences in the community that may be appropriate to changing personal situations, such as shared housing, Assisted Living facilities and Continuing Care Retirement Communities. A primary goal of CWW is to assist its members in acquiring the knowledge that will enable them to make the choices they will need to make as they age. To further this goal, CWW engages in activities such as social support, information, education, and advocacy.

CWW was started by four Princeton, New Jersey residents with a strong interest in the subject of aging in place.They soon involved others in discussions and the group rapidly grew to about 100. This size was seen as a practical maximum because the group generally meets at some member's house and it was felt important to form communities in which individual members could get to know one another. As others in the Princeton community expressed interest in joining CWW, three organizational steps were taken.

First: The group formed itself into a non-profit corporation, The Community Without Walls, Inc.

Second: To allow for expansion, a new organizational structure was conceived, that of "Houses" or membership units. The original group was designated as House One, and members of that House then assisted those interested in CWW's mission to form House Two, which soon grew to such a size that House Three, House Four, House Five and House Six was formed. Additional Houses are in the process of forming. Each House formulates its own by-laws following the pattern set down by CWW Inc. adding, as the organizers choose, additional conditions and requirements as long as they do not conflict with the basic CWW, Inc. by-laws and are approved by the CWW Inc. Steering Committee, its governing Board..

Third: Each House began holding small group meetings on subjects of continuing special interest, in addition to the regular full house meetings.

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Ongoing CWW activities include meetings of each House, joint meetings of all the Houses, and separate small interest group meetings on topics of special interest to some members. Other ongoing activities included a weekly drop-in "Live Chat Room" held at a local coffee shop, a group of CWW members who are single who meet regularly for dinner, pot luck dinners which allow members to get to know one another, a Friendly Support Group which assists members and their families in times of personal need and a Chores R Us group which helps members with matters such as programming VCRs and changing hard-to-reach light bulbs. House Three has a pager which members can call in an emergency and a "beeper keeper" who will get the person the help needed.

CWW also undertakes special projects which have included organizing two community-wide meetings as part of the White House Conference on Aging, and becoming involved in community issues of interest to CWW members, such as Senior Housing.

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The House meetings (held monthly or quarterly, depending on the House) are usually held in a member's home and are usually attended by a substantial number of the members of that House. The larger joint House meetings are usually held at a meeting facility in Princeton. Many of the meetings have a featured speaker, either someone from within CWW or an outside expert on a subject.

Some of the House meetings are in conference style. These meetings start with a presentation to frame a discussion topic, then break up into smaller groups in which the topic is discussed, often under the guidance of a facilitator, and then recombine into a group of the whole at which the smaller groups present their views and conclusions on the topic under discussion. CWW has found that this style of meeting helps to develop a CWW-wide consensus on a topic, and also helps members get to know each other better, enhancing the feeling of community.

Topics selected for presentation at House meetings are consistent with CWW's Mission, and have included senior housing (e.g. CCRCs, Life Care at Home programs and renovating personal homes to make them more senior-friendly); various aspects of personal Health (such as memory,nutrition and sex); Long Term Care Insurance, Picturing Your Ancestors, Memoir Writing, Travel, Surfing The Internet, New Passions, and Drive Better-Live Longer. Some of the Small Interest Group discussion topics have been Choice in Dying, Ethical Wills, Memoir Writing, Play Reading, Movie and Video Watching.

CWW meetings are open to members only.

Vicky Bergman has written articles about CWW's formation and growth which appeared in an issue of "Aging and the Human Spirit". If you would like to read Vicky's article, just click Vicky Article.

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