Established, Close-Knit Community
We are a rural cohousing community where neighbors know each other, care about each other, support each other, and have fun together. In our 24 homes, we represent a diversity of ages, incomes, livelihoods, and family units, but we all share a vision to live in close connection with each another and with nature.
Whether our members have been here since the beginning or have arrived in the 20+ years since we created Heartwood, we all reap the benefits of life in a close-knit community – that feeling of belonging and connection. Creating a successful community life together has not always been easy. We've learned a lot along the way. One of the things that has helped us maintain a high standard of interpersonal connection are our Interpersonal Agreements.
How Heartwood Operates
We encourage you to visit the "How Heartwood Works" page on this site to learn more about our legal, financial and management structures.
Not a Commune
We hear this more often than you'd think. When you think of a commune, you may picture the stereotypical group of 1970s hippies sharing meager habitations they've cobbled together, struggling to make money from their shared cottage industry making rope sandals, and perhaps following some guru. That's quite different from the reality of Heartwood.
Much of the confusion is that both 'commune' and 'cohousing' are 'co-' words. Additionally, the research we've seen says that less than 5% of the general population in the U.S. even knows the word cohousing, let alone understands what it means.
We have no guru here. We each choose whether to follow a spiritual path and what that path may be. Our secular, unifying ideology is to live with greater connection with our neighbors and with nature. Although we share many more resources than in a typical subdivision, we each own our own home and property, operate under a home owners' association and pursue our own interests and livelihood. Heartwood is a fertile garden where we each bring forth our personal gifts, talents, and passions within a community setting.
Plenty of Community and Plenty of Privacy
Although we live here because we value having more community in our lives, we all also deeply value our privacy. Most modern housing provides plenty of privacy, but almost no community. Heartwood provides plenty of both. Our homes are designed with front porches that encourage community engagement and with backyards that preserve privacy. Inside, our homes are completely private. Sometimes you might want to take a trail walk with friends; other times, maybe just a walk by yourself. Whether you feel like the company of others or some alone time, either is readily available.
We typically share three meals per week – Taco Tuesday potluck, Common Meal on Wednesday, and a potluck dinner on Friday. We also hold parties, celebrations, impromptu front porch gatherings, and many other social events. These meals and events are an essential part of connecting with each other and thereby strengthening our community fabric, but like all of our activities, they are optional. Some people attend pretty much all of our community activities; other people, not as many. We seek to create opportunities for community connection, not obligations.
Close to Nature
We live on a gorgeous piece of land in a gorgeous part of the country. Our land supports gardens, pastures, meadows, forests, livestock, and wildlife. Close by are mountains, forests, rivers, lakes, deserts, and red-rock canyons. There's not a freeway in sight. Living close to nature means we enjoy lots of outdoor exercise and a generally calmer, quieter, lower-stress, and healthier lifestyle.
We value living gently on the Earth, which means that we share many resources, live in energy efficient homes, and strive to minimize our environmental footprint.
We are a rural cohousing community where neighbors know each other, care about each other, support each other, and have fun together. In our 24 homes, we represent a diversity of ages, incomes, livelihoods, and family units, but we all share a vision to live in close connection with each another and with nature.
Whether our members have been here since the beginning or have arrived in the 20+ years since we created Heartwood, we all reap the benefits of life in a close-knit community – that feeling of belonging and connection. Creating a successful community life together has not always been easy. We've learned a lot along the way. One of the things that has helped us maintain a high standard of interpersonal connection are our Interpersonal Agreements.
How Heartwood Operates
We encourage you to visit the "How Heartwood Works" page on this site to learn more about our legal, financial and management structures.
Not a Commune
We hear this more often than you'd think. When you think of a commune, you may picture the stereotypical group of 1970s hippies sharing meager habitations they've cobbled together, struggling to make money from their shared cottage industry making rope sandals, and perhaps following some guru. That's quite different from the reality of Heartwood.
Much of the confusion is that both 'commune' and 'cohousing' are 'co-' words. Additionally, the research we've seen says that less than 5% of the general population in the U.S. even knows the word cohousing, let alone understands what it means.
We have no guru here. We each choose whether to follow a spiritual path and what that path may be. Our secular, unifying ideology is to live with greater connection with our neighbors and with nature. Although we share many more resources than in a typical subdivision, we each own our own home and property, operate under a home owners' association and pursue our own interests and livelihood. Heartwood is a fertile garden where we each bring forth our personal gifts, talents, and passions within a community setting.
Plenty of Community and Plenty of Privacy
Although we live here because we value having more community in our lives, we all also deeply value our privacy. Most modern housing provides plenty of privacy, but almost no community. Heartwood provides plenty of both. Our homes are designed with front porches that encourage community engagement and with backyards that preserve privacy. Inside, our homes are completely private. Sometimes you might want to take a trail walk with friends; other times, maybe just a walk by yourself. Whether you feel like the company of others or some alone time, either is readily available.
We typically share three meals per week – Taco Tuesday potluck, Common Meal on Wednesday, and a potluck dinner on Friday. We also hold parties, celebrations, impromptu front porch gatherings, and many other social events. These meals and events are an essential part of connecting with each other and thereby strengthening our community fabric, but like all of our activities, they are optional. Some people attend pretty much all of our community activities; other people, not as many. We seek to create opportunities for community connection, not obligations.
Close to Nature
We live on a gorgeous piece of land in a gorgeous part of the country. Our land supports gardens, pastures, meadows, forests, livestock, and wildlife. Close by are mountains, forests, rivers, lakes, deserts, and red-rock canyons. There's not a freeway in sight. Living close to nature means we enjoy lots of outdoor exercise and a generally calmer, quieter, lower-stress, and healthier lifestyle.
We value living gently on the Earth, which means that we share many resources, live in energy efficient homes, and strive to minimize our environmental footprint.
Safety and Support
We are blessed to live with virtually no crime and no traffic and the peace that brings. Kids safely run free and play in the woods, which means more time with friends and nature and less time in front of screens.
Because of our close-knit community, we know our neighbors and our neighbors know us. We help each other out in times of hardship or need. We bring over homemade soup when our neighbors are sick. We celebrate with each other in times of joy. Trusted adults watching out for our kids contributes to their being able to roam free. Kids are safe, loved, and well-supported. It takes a village.
Remote Work
Most of us who are not yet retired work from home. With 50 Mbps high-speed internet available and a great little regional airport 20 minutes away, we can have big city jobs while enjoying a peaceful rural lifestyle.
Multigenerational
When we first moved into our new community in 2000, many of us had families with kids. Since then those kids have grown up and moved away. Even though we don't have as many kids as we once did, we continue to welcome families with kids because we value living in a multigenerational neighborhood. Heartwood has always been an amazing place for kids to grow up and still is. To our delight, new families with kids are moving in and our kid population is growing. See more about what life is like for kids here on our FAQ page.
We are blessed to live with virtually no crime and no traffic and the peace that brings. Kids safely run free and play in the woods, which means more time with friends and nature and less time in front of screens.
Because of our close-knit community, we know our neighbors and our neighbors know us. We help each other out in times of hardship or need. We bring over homemade soup when our neighbors are sick. We celebrate with each other in times of joy. Trusted adults watching out for our kids contributes to their being able to roam free. Kids are safe, loved, and well-supported. It takes a village.
Remote Work
Most of us who are not yet retired work from home. With 50 Mbps high-speed internet available and a great little regional airport 20 minutes away, we can have big city jobs while enjoying a peaceful rural lifestyle.
Multigenerational
When we first moved into our new community in 2000, many of us had families with kids. Since then those kids have grown up and moved away. Even though we don't have as many kids as we once did, we continue to welcome families with kids because we value living in a multigenerational neighborhood. Heartwood has always been an amazing place for kids to grow up and still is. To our delight, new families with kids are moving in and our kid population is growing. See more about what life is like for kids here on our FAQ page.
For more information about Heartwood, check out these other pages: