Live Together® - Alignment with AARP Age Friendly Communities
An AARP Age Friendly Community is a community in which people can grow up and grow old with ease, is barrier-free, designed for diversity, is inclusive and cohesive, and is a community which optimizes opportunities for overall well-being to enhance quality of life as people age. It designs and adapts their natural and built environment for residents of all ages and different capacities. It meets the needs of people of all ages, whether someone is pushing a stroller or using a walker and allows people of all ages to participate in activities that keep the community healthy and encourage economic stability.
The Live Together® model for intergenerational community is in alignment with that of AARP and the creation of Age Friendly Community.
Live Together® Intergenerational Community
Live Together has a singular mission that is a uniquely transformative idea: that intergenerational living, person-centered care, and integral workforce development can be combined to provide the best environment for underserved residents of all ages to thrive. Live Together® was created as a non-profit that believes in intergenerational living and workforce development co-existing through the development of co-location opportunities to create a continuum of care. Live Together® is an Intergenerational Community model that supports the intersection of supporting youth to succeed and older adults who desire to continue to have purposeful and meaningful lives throughout their retirement.
Increasingly concerned about the impact of institutional care on elders, including the missed opportunities to provide humane solutions during the COVID-19 pandemic, we believe the most effective care strategically groups older adult residents with members of younger generations and deploys well-trained, well-paid care staff in supportive neighborhood solutions that are residentially scaled for all residents. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to the Live Together philosophy. The components of a Live Together community would be applied as appropriate to fulfill the grassroots needs identified by the residents living within a community and geographic area. As the Live Together model expands over time, the components are intended to be additive to meet the changing and evolving needs of residents within a community at-large. This approach can be applied to rural, urban, and suburban settings – addressing various income levels, acknowledging successful service delivery and amenity access currently available, and utilizing community assets that already exist. Identification of gaps in the housing, care, and amenity arenas with alignment of existing resources provides strength for the local economy, promotes intergenerational living, and provides opportunities to maintain purposeful living throughout an individual’s life span. Such networked communities, each tailored to its unique context, will be the next generation of caregiving for improved quality of life and equitable engagement.
Alignment At-a-Glance
AARP Age Friendly Communities and Live Together® Community Model
More Information about Live Together®
Mission
Live Together® is a nonprofit community development provider dedicated to the idea that intergenerational living and person-centered care provide the best environment for older adults to thrive.
We Believe in Intergenerational Living & Person-Centered Care
Intergenerational models can pair mission-minded seniors with underserved youth, ease the burden of adult children by offering close-by access to care, or simply provide venues for the wisdom of the aged to influence the energy of the young. Within each context, Live Together is committed to finding integrative living strategies for all generations to flourish. Person-centered care places the one receiving care at the center of decision making. Rather than acting on the priorities of a corporation, an institution, or even staff, it places resident needs first. The Live Together model impacts how residents live – serving the whole, unique human being versus being reduced to a diagnosis.
Who We Are
Jane M. Rohde, the Founder of Live Together, Inc., the Board of Directors, the Expert Advisory Council and Faculty for the Institute have decades of combined experience in care model development, design, and operations culminating in creating successful, sustainable intergenerational living options. Live Together works with other like-minded folks – developers, community groups, higher education institutions, children’s homes, and local governments to evaluate community assets through the lens of engagement and intergenerational living. It takes an interdisciplinary approach to be successful in creating systemic change!
What We Offer
Live Together® offers the hope of implementable change – working on solutions for residents of all ages to grow and live purposeful lives. Services include Live Together Institute customized educational programming on person-centered care and operations and Live Together demonstration project guidance and services – including partnering with developers, operation and/or management of the various applicable components, and ownership and/or facility management of properties.
The Institute
The Live Together Institute continues to add to existing curriculum and staff training with the intention of furthering meaningful careers in aging based on person-centered care and interdisciplinary philosophies. Workforce development includes understanding and fulfilling the needs of staff – living wage, affordable housing, benefit access, childcare, and transportation – once fulfilled allows staff to focus on their families and careers.
Demonstration Projects
Live Together includes the completion of demonstration projects based on a grassroots evaluation of existing resources and identification of needs within a community, neighborhood, or hometown. By understanding the gaps, needs can be met through partnerships, volunteerism, and community involvement that focuses on positive social impact and quality of life for all residents and all ages.
Live Together components can be cumulative over time and services accessed by all ages within an intergenerational, intentional, and inclusive model – all integrated within the community fabric. A continuum of care is created through various components that serve a specific resident need and fulfill individualized care. Intergenerational communities coupled with workforce development opportunities bridge gaps in our broken systems. It is time to recognize and step forward to support elders, youth, and families in creating a community to live together.