ABOUT US
Village Drive Village (VDV) is the county’s newest “Village,” a neighborhood association dedicated to helping retirees stay in their homes as they age. The “Village” is working to meet with neighbors who feel isolated and alone, and to help with errands and the regular small tasks of home and yard maintenance which can become more and more difficult.
It’s vital for people not to feel isolated, to have neighbors they can count on. VDV neighbors are getting to know each other through social activities, like neighborhood gatherings, group walks, and visits to nearby attractions. The Village is just beginning to share some benefits with The Woodlands, a retirement facility in our neighborhood which is hosting our master classes on gardening and photography, with plans to cover other topics especially interesting to older adults. The VDV website calendar is an essential part of these efforts, as are regular email communications about news and events. Some people are becoming reacquainted with neighbors they had not seen since their children grew up decades ago. Everyone is making new friends and sharing information about fun stores, restaurants, walking trails, electricians, dog walkers, auto repairs, you name it. We welcome members of any age: $25 a year or $39 for the whole family.
Village Drive Village has a “concierge” system for its silver members, who pay $50 a year. If a silver member needs help, they call the concierge phone number and are assigned a volunteer who has indicated an interest in helping with that particular problem. Volunteers are trained and fully insured by Village Drive Village, and they are truly the life blood of the organization. They run our virtual office, plan neighborhood activities, update our web pages, and send emails to invite people to participate. And all of this is in addition to the volunteers who directly help members with handyman services, companionship, errands, computer problems, and more. We phone some silver members every day just to check to make sure they are well and have human contact. VDV is focused on one of the most important aspects of helping retirees, their need for social companionship.
VDV also is sharing information about important Fairfax Government services and activities, from safe driving to preventing falls, from health issues to traffic issues. We are not a political group, and we do not allow discussion of partisan politics at our gatherings. On the local level, however, we are advocates for our neighborhood, especially for our older adults. VDV participated in National Night Out to meet our local first responders, attended Supervisor Cook’s “government college” to learn how Fairfax County works, and regularly attend Fairfax County’s 50+ Ambassadors to better understand what is available to help people, both government help and private help. VDV keeps the neighborhood informed about all of this.
A village can have many neighborhood associations functioning in the same geographic area without any conflict of interest because the village has a different mission. For example, within the VDV area’s 26 connecting streets and 550 houses are 16 different subdivisions, a few with active homeowners associations and most no longer functioning. The Village can help the neighborhood associations speak with a bigger voice on issues of mutual concern, and the neighborhood associations can help the village with social activities and with meeting new people. Do people speed through our neighborhood? Do all of your streets have street lights? Are you welcoming new residents to your neighborhood? Are your local county parklands equipped to encourage older adults to exercise? Do you know where elderly neighbors live? Would you help them during storm emergencies or keep an eye out for scammers? These questions are typical of what neighbors want to do something about, and the best first start is banding together to speak with one big voice.
We are all volunteers. We are neighbors helping neighbors.
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