January 25, 2026
Launching a Village to promote aging in community: human, social, and financial capital
This case study examines the three-year development (2022-2025) of the Glen Rock Neighborhood Network (GRNN), one of New Jersey’s few Villages—community-based membership organizations that help older adults age in place through volunteer services, social programming, and resource connections.
The article describes how local leaders and residents in Glen Rock, a suburban town in Bergen County, mobilized three key types of capital to launch their Village: human capital (skilled volunteers and leaders), social capital (community connections and national Village network resources), and financial capital (foundation grants and donations).
Development occurred across three phases: establishing core team and administrative foundations (January 2022-June 2023), building infrastructure including committees and digital systems (June 2023-August 2024), and preparing for launch with volunteer recruitment and membership programs (August 2024-March 2025). By November 2025, GRNN had 36 active members, 24 trained volunteers who provided 100+ service hours, with transportation and household help being the most requested services.
Key lessons include adopting an asset-based approach focused on existing strengths rather than deficits, embedding local efforts within larger regional and state aging initiatives, and designing for both sustainability and scalability to support Village replication in other communities. The author emphasizes that successful Village development requires vision, collaboration, patience, and strategic partnerships with organizations like North Jersey Villages and the broader age-friendly community movement.
Article is by School of Social Work, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ
Read full article in Frontiers in Public Health at https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1688002/full
