By Roy L Hales
Rare Birds was birthed out of friendship. One of the inspirations was the film “How to boil a Frog,” that Mary Jordan and Val MacKay-Greer saw at the 2011 Kamloops Film Festival. The film maker had wanted to bring hope to his daughter’s generation. It brought forth hope in Mary and Val as well. They were attracted to a communal lifestyle.
“What’s stopping us,” Val said.
They started to email people they knew, to see who would be interested in living together. The first of the Rare Birds were five people who came to their first meeting, in March 2011.
Mary is “a counsellor working part time…. She is curious about interdependence in a culture that values independence and fears dependence. Living cooperatively, sharing resources, skills and time are part of a value system she embraces. ”
Val is a retired health practitioner who “needs a purpose in life and enjoys challenges especially those of her own choosing! The RareBirds Housing Cooperative is probably one of the most challenging and daring things she has done in a long time!”
Her husband, Alan Ciastko, was one of the first doctors to work for the Northern Health Unit (University of Manitoba) in1967. He & Val volunteered in Nepal for 2 years; followed by 1 year In Kenya & Lesotho.
Hines said his bio should read something like this, “father, husband, facilitator and retreat leader, coach, Anglican priest, hiker and reader.” When they decided to build a house, he also became the “go to” guy (contact person) for the trades.
His wife, Robyn Hines, has been described as someone “with a generous heart,” who thrives on dialogue and exploring ideas. She has been a student of yoga for the past decade, and loves to kayak, walk and hike, socialize and cook.
They are also all parents and grandparents though, Mary points out, “Some of us are more aging than others. These five hope to become an expanded family and eventually share in each other’s family networks. They share a love of cooking, good food and wine, and hiking.
These five were the first of the “Rare Birds,” but there are others. Glen and Twyla Burgoyne brought forward the idea of a guest room for people going through transition. Sandi Ceccon’s administration background made her the obvious choice for managing the finances. John Hull spent his boyhood summers at the Oneida Community, a society founded in the 19th century in North America focused on communal living.
The Birds life together entered a new phase on February 14, 2014, when they took possession of their nest.
Listening to their story one is tempted to ask if Rare Birds is an attempt to return to the 1970’s, but the reality is that our fiercely individualistic Western culture that is “abnormal.” Through-out most of human history, our ancestors lived in semi-communal situations (like villages) and it is only in the last century that we have ceased to know our neighbors.
That said, most of the communes that sprang up in the 70’s are gone. Many were “happenings” of the season; Others were sincere attempts to create an alternate society.
Someone once said everyone living in community passed through three phases. First there was the honeymoon, in which you see all the possibilities. Next comes the time of disappointment, when expectations are not met. Many leave at that point. Others persist and reach clarity. That is when they truly enter into community.
It would be easy to dismiss the Birds as a community in the honeymoon stage, but that would be an assumption rather than an observation of individual members.
Few communities have undergone such preparation. Mary, Sandi, Val and Alan have previously lived together. Dan lived in a communal situation while training for the ministry. The entire group has gone on two to three day retreats in preparation for their communal existence.
There has also probably never been a community with such a high proportion of people trained to deal with relational problems: two doctors, two nurses, a priest and a tourism professor.
“We are aware of the odds,” Val said.
She does not look to the 1970‘s for a model, but to a 90-100 person co-housing community in Langley, BC, called WindSong. Though the residents share a six acre property, they have each purchased units within a 6,000 square common house. They come together for a common meal, but are free to pursue their individual activities.
The Birds decided to build a 6,000 square foot house, whose ownership they have divided six ways. Three couples and three singles have each put in $200,000 for a share. Each “member” gets a 400 square foot personal space – consisting of a bedroom, bathroom and sitting area – and a much larger group of common rooms where they visit, watch television and eat.
Their house also has a guest room reserved for people who are going through a life transition. The occupants will be more transitory, staying for two years at the most, and they will be expected to give something back to the community. (This is a principle adopted by some of the most successful development agencies and enables “recipients” to take ‘ownership” of the project.)
Several of the residents have plans to travels. John’s tourism classes, for example, take him away to foreign countries for weeks at a time.
There may be times the house is relatively empty, though they have plans for community experiences.
The Birds share a love of good food and wine. They share a common dining area, will buy groceries collectively and, though each of the members is assigned a day, most of them want to cook in pairs.
Gardening will be another of the collective experiences, though they will have to wait for Spring.
Not counting food, the members each expect to pay $300 a month for household costs.
Though Dan was in the forefront when it came to building, the Birds generally make decisions by consensus. This means that someone who has strong objections to something can stop it, but they are then expected to come up with an alternative.
“One of the strengths of our community is that we are not based on a common ideology, but rather friendships” Dan said.
“We share a deep respect for life and the Earth Mother of us all,” Mary added.
They also want to their home to be sustainable. The 6,000 square foot structure is double insulated, they have R50 ceilings and a 7 KW PV solar installation is hooked into the grid. Three of the panels are specifically devoted to hot water and, though it was minus 10 celsius, Dan said they were supplying all that was needed.
To learn more, go to http://www.rarebirdshousing.ca/