As people are living longer, the models of retirement, healthcare, and housing look different than they did just a decade ago. Dene Peterson, the guest on this weeks’ Shaping Families radio program, decided she did not want to end up in a nursing home. So with others she began ElderSpirit, an independent co-housing community in southwestern Virginia.

“When I began to think about retirement,” said Dene, “I started talking with my friends about what we really want: we want to be with friends, to be able to die at home, to not be a nobody dying alone in a high rise apartment. So that’s why I started ElderSpirit.” Peterson and the ElderSpirit community are also featured in Embracing Aging: Families Facing Change documentary from Third Way Media airing on ABC-TV until Dec. 12, 2010. Natalie Francisco, co-pastor of Calvary Community Church in Hampton, Va., adds the inspirational reflection to this week’s program.

Shaping Families radio program airs each weekend on 17 local radio stations and online at www.ShapingFamilies.com. Also featured at the website is a weekly blog by host Burton Buller, a weekly recipe from Shaping Families staff and contributors, a study guide for small groups and Sunday school classes and many additional resources. Shaping Families is produced by Third Way Media through Mennonite Mission Network.