• Hunger Mountain Co-op, Montpelier, March 22nd. HSCVT staff, volunteers, and participants will set up an info table outside the co-op from 11:30 AM to 1 PM. Stop by for brochures, applications — or just to chat!
• Kellogg Hubbard Library, the Hayes Room, Montpelier, April 6th. For an hour, starting promptly at 5:30 PM, HSCVT folks will present information and answer questions about ways you can be involved with the home sharing program.  Light refreshments will be served.
• Barre Rotary Spring Exposition, Barre Auditorium, April 23rd. We’re part of the Central Vermont Council on Aging, which will host an informational table at this annual event for all three days (April 21-23).  Team Home Share will staff the table on the 23rd from 5:00 to 9:00 PM.

We look forward to discussing home share with you in person, or online!  Keep in touch!

That’s because the multi-year grant — $200,000 from the Vermont Community Development Program — is contingent upon HSCVT raising matching funds, including $24,000 from individuals this year.

Williamstown and Morristown joined Montpelier and HSCVT as consortium partners on behalf of Orange and Lamoille counties.

When Governor Jim Douglas announced the grant in July, HSCVT was one of just 10 projects statewide that submitted successful grant proposals.  The community development program administers federal money after a rigorous screening process.

“All of today’s recipients are making a positive and important contribution to our economy and our state’s well-being,” Governor Douglas said.  HSCVT was chosen as a recipient to meet increased demand for home sharing matches in Washington County, and strengthen expansion in Lamoille and Orange counties.

“This extraordinary opportunity means that whatever any individual gives to HSCVT will go twice as far this year,” observes Director Betsy Reid.  “And every gift will be greatly appreciated.”

To make a donation, click onthe Donate icon at the bottom of this page. Then, click on make a donation by credit card. That will take you to JustGive and the option to give to Central Vermont Council on Aging, HSCVT’s 501(c)(3) sponsor.  After you enter your donation, please remember to enter Home Share of Central Vermont in the designation box.

For the home sharing story, host Kristen Carlson interviewed HSCVT Director Betsy Reid before going on location to the home of Elsie Beard.  Elsie at the time was in a very successful home sharing match with Santiago Carey (Carey, a computer professional, later moved out-of-state for a new job). In the VPT interview, both Elsie and Santiago talk about how home sharing improved their lives.  The blend of information from the HSCVT office with the voices of participants in matches provides an excellent introduction to home sharing in Central Vermont.

The 2009 event will be held on Saturday, November 28th at 7 PM in the Montpelier City Hall (home to Lost Nation Theater).  Approximately 25 musicians — men and women — will compete to earn the much-coveted “first place” in this highly competitive “night of the Bobs.”  What makes a winning Bob?  That’s up to the nine distinguished judges to determine — and they take their jobs very seriously!

Tickets are $10 per person and will be sold at LACE and Exile in Barre, and Bear Pond Books and Riverwalk Records in Montpelier.

You can sign up to compete, learn the names of the judges, and find out who is generously sponsoring the event.  Check out the Fifth Annual Great Green Mountain Bob Dylan Wannabe Contest.

Customers can present the “10-10″ coupon to get 10% off all their book purchases at the Berlin Waldenbooks for two days only, October 21 and 22, 2009.  Waldenbooks will then donate 10% of the total book sales from those two days to Home Share of Central Vermont.

“We love this event, because it’s all about community, and community is at the heart of home sharing,” said HSCVT director Betsy Reid.  “Just like a good home share match, everybody wins: customers get 10% off their books, HSCVT gets much-needed funding to support our work, and Waldenbooks gets more traffic through their store those two days.”

“Furthermore, just like a good book, home share matches enhance the daily lives of participants,” Reid observed.  “We’re happy and grateful to Waldenbooks.  This event is a perfect match for us!”

Jessica Barnett, the manager of Waldenbooks at the Berlin Mall, approached HSCVT with the “10-10″ idea after having seen news articles about HSCVT’s need for operating funds.  “Borders/Waldenbooks is committed to helping the communities we serve, and this event is our way of giving back to a very deserving program,” Barnett said.  “In fact, we’re hoping to host more events like this in the future with Home Share of Central Vermont or other worthy non-profits.”

To request a copy of the “10-10″ coupon, email: info@homesharecvt.org by 3 PM on October 20, 2009.

HSCVT signed up with Sovernet Communications as the program’s internet service provider in mid-June.  Because HSCVT is a non-profit program on a very lean budget, Sovernet agreed to a $10 credit on Home Share’s monthly bills for the next year.

“Obviously, internet is a crucial tool in our ongoing efforts to facilitate successful home share matches,” Reid said.  “At the same time, the monthly ISP bill was a big expense for our small program, especially in today’s economy.  We’re so grateful that Sovernet understood our situation, and generously agreed to help.”

Reid said HSCVT is relieved to have reliable internet service.  “Even better,” she said, “is knowing every day when we sign on that Sovernet Communications is now part of the home share team.”

The donations came from the Washington Electric Cooperative Community Fund, the Kinney Drug Foundation, and Price Chopper’s Golub Foundation.

“Because home sharing is all about community, and businesses are the backbone of our communities, we are always pleased and grateful to have local business support,” said HSCVT Director Betsy Reid.  “That’s never been more true than today, when many businesses are themselves facing economic struggles.  These contributions are truly a testament to community spirit.”

The Washington Electric Cooperative Community Fund supports the activities of “community organizations which enhance the well-being of our members and the communities they live in.”  This fund donated $500.00 to Home Share of Central Vermont.

The Kinney Drug Foundation also gave $500.00 to HSCVT.  The goal of this foundation is “to help people live healthier lives within the communities served by Kinney Drugs Inc” in Vermont and New York.

The third business donor, Price Chopper’s Golub Foundation, contributes to non-profit organizations within their six state marketing area that are “family-friendly, soundly managed,” and have “a mission to enhance the communities where we live and work.”  The Golub Foundation donated $500.00 to HSCVT’s  Mileage Program, in recognition of the need for staff and volunteers to regularly drive to the homes of seniors and other program participants throughout Lamoille, Orange and Washington counties. 

“We are encouraged by all three donations,” said Reid. “At the same time, we know we’ll need ongoing, community-wide funding help for the foreseeable future.  The recession is not expected to abate any time soon, and gas prices are again on the rise.  This means more Vermonters will turn to us for help – and we will turn to the community to provide the financial backing we need to help them find good home sharing partners.” 

Home Share of Central Vermont facilitates live-in matches between home providers who need some assistance to stay living independently in their own homes as long as possible, and home seekers who are willing to provide that assistance in exchange for affordable housing.  The Central Vermont Council on Aging is HSCVT’s fiscal sponsor.  HSCVT raises all its own funds.   

In response, Home Share of Central Vermont sent the following email, which host Jane Lindholm read on the air:

“It’s great that you’re doing a show on bartering, which we believe is definitely one of the ways we can all change, and actually enjoy changing times.

“Bartering is essentially what the state’s two home sharing programs are all about (Home Share of Central Vermont in Washington, Orange and Lamoille counties; and HomeShare Vermont in Chittenden, Grand Isle and Addison counties).  There is a reduced stipend involved in many matches — but many others are straight barters.  Typically, they are an exchange of housing (sometimes food as well) for a protective presence, help with cooking, shopping, etc.

“In a good home share match, these barters work out beautifully — in part, because each person helps the other.  This gives greater meaning to each person’s life, as well as reducing financial strains and aging worries.”

Thank you Jane and the Vermont Edition crew for helping spread the word about the benefits of home sharing!

“Because home sharing is all about forging relationships and engaging in activities together, these theater vouchers are a wonderfully thoughtful gift,” HSCVT Director Betsy Reid said.  “Additionally, many of our participants are low income and would otherwise have difficulty paying for theater tickets.  A night at Lost Nation will be a real treat.  Many thanks to Cabot Creamery for their creative gift to Central Vermont home sharers!” 

Beard contacted central Vermont’s only home sharing program looking for help with lawn care, bringing in firewood, and light housekeeping.  After an extensive screening process and several introductions, Beard decided to try a match with Santiago Carey, a computer professional relocating here from New York State.

Carey, for his part, was looking for affordable housing close to his work.  He, too, had several other introductions before choosing to live with Beard.  Since he moved in last fall, the two have been enjoying a successful home share match — including many shared meals.

“It’s a classic home sharing success story,” saysHSCVT director Betsy Reid.  “Each person helps the other live a richer, happier life.  We’ve had such wonderful participants in this program over the last six years.  There’s a lot for us to celebrate.”

Carey and Beard are just two of the nearly 200 people Home Share of Central Vermont has helped find matches since the program started six years ago, when the Central Vermont Council on Aging agreed to sponsor the new program.  CVCOA hired Reid on March 3, 2003.

With the help of a core group of dedicated volunteers, a thriving program was built around one fundamental goal: arranging live-in matches between older and disabled Vermonters who want to remain in their own homes, outside of institutional care, with other Vermonters of all ages who lend a helping hand in exchange for affordable housing.  The youngest participant today is 17 and the oldest is 96.

Home sharing was a novel concept in central Vermont when HSCVT first opened its doors.  Now, though, business is booming, as word spreads that home sharing not only makes economic sense but also enriches people’s lives.

Indeed, Reid sees a silver lining in the current economic crisis, because, she says, “scores of Vermonters will experience firsthand how home sharing lessens the isolation of rural living; provides the ability to live well and frugally; allows people to stay in their own homes; and relieves adult children of elder care worries.

“It’s been especially gratifying to see how home sharing has helped younger citizens,” Reid continued.  “Our young participants have been able to save money to buy a house, pay off student loans, start new careers in the public service sector, and even find safe and stable housing to finish high school.”

HSCVT is based in Barre, and serves Washington, Lamoille and Orange Counties.  The Central Vermont Council on Aging continues to serve as the 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor of the home share program, but HSCVT must raise all its own funds.