Our History.
Friends Village community leadership, circa 1949
A black and white scrapbook page with two photographs of doctors, Dr. Charles Hunter on the left and Dr. Jesse Baker on the right. Between the photos, there is a handwritten poem praising doctors.
Black and white photo of three groups of people, each labeled with names and locations, including Elizabeth Lester and Helen Satterthwaite from Newtown, Laura Cadwallader and Florence Lomb from Makefield, and Carlton Ledbom from Farington, all in outdoor settings.
A collage of three black and white photographs of women, with handwritten names and locations above and below each photo. The women are named Lettie Betts, Nellie Rue, and Horace Tomlinson, and they are associated with meetings in Buckingham, Solebury, Bristol, Middletown, and Wrightstown.
A black-and-white photo of two people standing outdoors, attached to a black background with handwritten notes. The notes read: "COMMITTEE MEMBERS," "Ann Paxon," "Thomas Paxon," "Southampton Meeting."
Original article commemorating the opening of Styer Hall in Advance of Bucks County, Oct. 25 1979.
Donors Darlington and Helen Styer signing over the property that would become Styer House.
A black and white newspaper article from July 1990 titled 'The noblest of fruits' with a photo of a woman and a child. The woman is wearing a dress and a hat, and the child is holding a shovel. The article is by Edna Pullinger and discusses planting a seed for Friends Villager in Helen and Darlington Styer.
Two pieces of paper with typed text, placed on a plain dark gray background. The top paper contains Darlington Styler's poem, and the bottom paper appears to be a dialogue or conversation.
Quaker innovation in aging services for over 125 years.
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At the Yearly Meeting, held in Philadelphia, a tall Friend wearing a plain bonnet rose in the gallery and in the impressive manner characteristic of her, expressed a concern for "Homes" for persons of limited means and for others needing care and congenial companionship in their declining years.
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Quaker philanthropist Anna T. Jeanes, donates $200,000 to support the establishment of “Boarding Homes for the Aged and Infirm Friends and those in sympathy with us.”
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Friends Boarding Home opened in a home owned by Dr. Lettie Smith. Its first boarders were Mary Simpson, Annie B. Knowles, and Dr. Smith.
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Ground breaking for Paxson Hall, Friends Village’s historic property in Newtown Borough.
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Paxson Hall opens “where aged Friends and those in sympathy with them who desire to be relieved of the care of homemaking or who by reasons of circumstances are deprived of so doing may enjoy all comforts of a congenial and quiet life.”
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Independent Living cottages built behind Paxson Hall.
Quaker and behavioral psychologist Dr. M. Powell Lawton is among the first to recognize a need for unique living spaces designed to accommodate the elderly.
Quakers in the Philadelphia area establish some of the first Continuing Care Communities in the country (now known as Life Plan Communities).
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Quakers Darlington and Helen Styer donate their home and surrounding property on Lower Dolington Road to develop an independent, intentional community affiliated with the historic boarding home.
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Friends Village opens on Lower Dolington Road.
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Recognizing emerging research about flourishing in later life, Friends Village shifts its focus to purpose, community and wellness.
Friends Village community leadership, circa 1949
“Come live with us on the top of the hill
Where the skies are blue and the wind blows free,
Where the cardinal whistles at the break of dawn
And the mockingbird sings from yonder tree.
Come live with us on the top of the hill
Where the orchards grace the sloping green
And the screech owl calls to his feathered mate
While a white moon brightens the midnight scene.”
— Darlington Styer