Santa Barbara Village Awarded Significant Grants

Santa Barbara Village, a community-based membership organization for residents 50 years and older living in the South Coast (Carpinteria through Goleta, inclusive), officially opened in mid October, and will expand into a full-phased launch in January, offering members access to comprehensive quality services and fostering social support and a sense of community. The Village’s opening follows a three-year thorough planning process that involved the participation of over 150 individuals and several respected local organizations. Santa Barbara Village is a collaborative initiative of the Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara (serving as the organization’s fiscal sponsor), the Center for Successful Aging, United Way of Santa Barbara County, and AARP Santa Barbara. Membership is non-denominational and South Coast residents 50 years and older are eligible to join.

Santa Barbara Village is part of the Village Movement sweeping the nation, providing communities a successful model for grassroots community collaborations that help and empower older adults to live happily, healthfully, and successfully in their own homes as they age by providing a network of resources that addresses members’ living needs as well as their social, cultural, and educational interests. There are an estimated 60 Village programs and more than 100 currently in the planning stage throughout the country.

The Archstone Foundation, in support of its mission to prepare society for the growing needs of an aging society, has awarded Santa Barbara Village a $98,700 grant, to be disbursed over a two year period, as well as technical assistance, to support Santa Barbara Village’s launch of a grassroots village model serving Santa Barbara. The grant was one of 11 awarded under the foundation’s Responsive Grantmaking portfolio, representing an investment in Creating Aging Friendly Communities through the Expansion of Villages, which seeks to further understand and document the varying village models being developed. The Foundation’s President and CEO, Joseph F. Prevratil, J.D., said, “With these grants, the Archstone Foundation has continued its commitment to serving older adults. Through these grants, the Foundation is supporting consumer driven culture change for delivery of services for older adults who desire to age in community, and will identify the key organizational characteristics to advance the effectiveness and sustainability of these innovative models. The movement for Villages will grow and provide meaningful, viable options for older persons to age in community across America. If villages are successful and sustainable then together we will be pioneers in a movement that will be tailored to meet the needs of an aging population. ”