Podcast 144 – Joe Carella: Creating Unlimited Options For Aging

Executive Director Joe Carella of the Scandinavian Charitable Society of Greater Boston talks about how his accidental placement in a geriatric hospital ward as a teenager sparked his passion for community-centered living: a commonsense approach to aging where older adults in residential facilities are connected to the larger community through events and programs at the facilities that anyone can choose to participate in. Joe’s passion was stoked on a research trip to Scandinavia, where he visited several facilities for older adults in search of alternatives to caring for America’s aging population. He later oversaw the design and development of the Scandinavian Living Center in Newton, Massachusetts, an assisted-living community that welcomes over 2,000 visitors a month and is based on the principles in Joe’s book, “Creating Unlimited Options for Aging: The Path Forward.” Joe tells us why institutional housing for older adults is outdated and even club-like communities for older adults, like The Villages in Florida, are unhealthy. He makes clear that community-centered living isn’t a marketing concept, but a gathering concept.