Blog archive
April 2024
Stimulated by "Caste"
04/22/2024
Tulsa reparations, Religion and Politics
04/09/2024
March 2024
Trumps War with Black Women
03/31/2024
Addressing The Needs of Older Adults Through Pasadena Village
03/25/2024
Coming Soon: More Resources for Older Americans, Online and in Person
03/25/2024
Community Building Locally and Nationally
03/25/2024
Preparing for the Future with Ready or Not
03/25/2024
Volunteering is at The Heart of the Village
03/25/2024
Women's Liberation: Then and Now
03/25/2024
Writing Memoirs Together
03/25/2024
Current Views on Current Events
03/20/2024
Unchained
03/18/2024
Rumr of Humor issue # 2409
03/10/2024
Blacks Portrayed by European Artists
03/03/2024
Rumor of Humor #2408
03/03/2024
February 2024
Caring for Ourselves and Each Other
02/27/2024
Doug Colliflower Honored
02/27/2024
Great Decisions Connects Us to the Worldwide Community
02/27/2024
Letter from the President
02/27/2024
Pasadena Village's Impact
02/27/2024
The Power of Touch
02/27/2024
Villages as a New Approach to Aging
02/27/2024
Addressing Gang Violence in Pasadena-Altadena
02/21/2024
Rumor of Humor Issue 2407
02/19/2024
Thank You For Caring.
02/12/2024
Rumor of Humor 2405
02/11/2024
Curve Balls
02/10/2024
Sylvan Lane
02/10/2024
Rumor of Humor 2404
02/09/2024
Larry Duplechan, Blacks in Film
02/03/2024
January 2024
Pasadena Village Joins Community Partners in Vaccination Campaign
01/29/2024
Rumor of Humor #2403
01/28/2024
Pasadena Village Joins Two Healthy Aging Resource Projects
01/25/2024
Decluttering: Do It Now
01/24/2024
Village Volunteers Contribute to the Huntington Magic
01/24/2024
Villagers Creating Community
01/24/2024
Villagers Reflect on Black History Month
01/24/2024
Walk With Ease, 2024
01/24/2024
Wide Ranging Discussion on Current Issues
01/22/2024
Wide Ranging Discussion on Current Issues
01/22/2024
Rumor of Humor # 2402
01/21/2024
Rumor of Humor # 2401
01/15/2024
Re- Entry Programs, a Personal Experience
01/08/2024
Community Building Locally and Nationally
By Ed MervinePosted: 03/25/2024
Co-written by Dick Myers.
The Pasadena Village works because members, old and new alike, step up and partner with others. In Pasadena Village-speak, that’s called volunteering. It can also be called community building. The Village has talented full- and part-time staffers providing valuable administrative support, but the delivery of programs and services gets done by Village members. When we volunteer, we are the operations staff. We are the reason for the Village’s success. Caregiving, cultural events, educational workshops and a long list of gatherings, from decluttering and gardening to various discussion groups, happen because we volunteer.
There is no outside agency, government office or corporate structure providing funding, support, direction or oversight. We are led by our peers. When we volunteer, we are the management team. The Village Board Committees and the Village Program Teams function because we volunteer.
Because we volunteer, the Village is able to work across boundaries and tap into resources through partnerships with several local, state, national organizations. Perhaps the most important is the Village to Village Network (VtVN) based in St. Louis. The VtVN provides member villages expert guidance, resources and support, and champions the village model at state and national levels as a best practice for healthy, vibrant aging.
Pasadena Village and VtVN actively collaborate and partner in several areas, including but not limited to research, technology, programing, and sharing best practices. The newest VtVN–Pasadena Village initiative is in research. Starting last October, Pasadena Village joined with the VtVN, the Rand Corporation and Rutgers University to develop a dialogue among villages and national researchers. Villagers Dick Myers, Marvin Dainoff, Ed Mervine and others from across the country volunteered to be included in that dialogue and to help build capacity for healthy aging research. When findings become available in 2026 or later, they will aid Pasadena Village in the design of programs and services, and will inform policy and funding decisions at all levels.
Technology is another example of successful collaboration with the VtVN. We acquired our administrative software through theVtVN. Dick Myers and Hanna Rough-Schock regularly participate in monthly Helpful Village software user group meetings. The Reporting Module we are currently implementing was developed by the Clayton Valley Village.
Wayne April, Dick Myers and Hannah Rough-Schock share Pasadena Village’s approach to LGBTQ+ community with the VtVN Rainbow Network workgroup. As part of another collaboration, Claire Gorfinkel and Wayne April share the work of the Pasadena Village Care Team in the VtVN’s monthly Supporting Our Vulnerable Members Zoom call.
Several of our programs are products of our collaboration with the VtVN, two of which include Covid vaccine outreach and the purchase of the Ready or Not program, which was developed by another Village in the VtVN.
Over the years, Pasadena Village volunteers participated in forums sharing experience, expertise and best practices. One of these, the VtVN Village Mentor Forum, provides mentoring and resources for Villages in formation. In another forum, Villagers share successes, failures, best practices and solicit advice. Pasadena Village volunteers also present and facilitate discussions as part of the VtVN’s annual conference that addresses issues relevant to all villages, as well as what the villages provide society at large.
When we share our expertise, skills and accomplishments, and we help expand options for older adults to live independent, healthy, and purposeful lives, we also help build community and contribute to the health and strength of the nation.