Seeking safety, welcome, Durham couple creates 1-of-a-kind cohousing community

Pat McAulay and her wife, Margaret Roesch, wanted to grow old in a community where they felt safe and welcome. So they founded Village Hearth Cohousing, a community for LGBT people and allies, ages 55 and older.

Posted 11:13 p.m. Nov 18, 2019 — Updated 11:13 p.m. Nov 18, 2019

Sarah Krueger

, WRAL Durham reporter

DURHAM, N.C. — Pat McAulay and her wife, Margaret Roesch, wanted to grow old in a community where they felt safe and welcome. They say that LGBT people often face discrimination in nursing homes and assisted living facilities, so they founded Village Hearth Cohousing, a community for LGBT people and allies, ages 55 and older.

"We wanted to have a place that was safe, and where we could be ourselves, where our wedding anniversary would be celebrated, where we could hold hands in public," McAulay said.

Of the planned 28 units – each has two bedrooms and one or two bathrooms –at Village Hearth Cohousing, 24 have already sold. Residents will begin moving in next spring. Sale prices have ranged from $375,000 to $409,000.

People from all over the country – from Louisville, Atlanta, Boston, New York City and Washington, D.C. – are choosing to settle down here, McAulay said.

"We are the first LGBT-focused senior cohousing community in the United States, and we hope to be a model for others across the country. Cohousing is a group of people who come together, intentionally, to be good neighbors. That’s the purpose," she said.

The units are accessible, and they face each other with wide sidewalks and a communal gathering space.

That was intentional.

"We wanted to have some people close to us," McAulay said. "We knew that we couldn’t age alone. My wife and I are childless ... And so we wanted to have the support as we age."

The focus on togetherness is what inspired Dona McNeil and her husband Tony Scott to buy one of the homes.

"It’s really hard right now. Where we live, we know one neighbor," she said. "I think the data says if you live in a community, that as you grow older, you can actually grow older and stay well."

Both McNeil and Scott had experience in helping aging parents. The couple plans on making Village Hearth Cohousing a permanent home.

"It’s really nice to know where you’re going to be, and who you’re going to be with," Scott said.

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