VH community memoir

The appeal of Village Homes was open spaces, emphasis on trees/gardening, solar, community.

Our house was finished in September of 1981 a few days before we were married on the deck of Pat Siegel’s house. Pat and her daughter designed our house; Pat built it. Almost every evening we would walk from Elendil to our house site to check on progress; sometimes the walk would take and hour or so as we were invited to fill our wine glasses along the way. We made some minor changes in the design. The north section of the Village was the last to be developed, so the walk from south to north showed the evolution of the Village–more foliage to the south, larger houses to the north and little foliage.

I served as President of the VHA Board in 1983-4. During that time the original Daycare was discussed and approved. The most frequent complaints were then, as they are now?, about dogs off-lease and parking. Water and “safety walks” were not issues. There were many work parties, but much of our efforts focused on our own yards and the common area: both of which were bare dirt.

We have raised 3 children here, and they love it still.

I remember Mitterand’s visit well. He and his group arrived in a couple of huge helicopters, which blew the canopy off the gazebo. Although I had been back from Vietnam for over a decade, the sound of the helicopters raised my heart rate greatly and I was momentarily back in another place. 

We loved the Plumshire Cafe.