Rumble Strip · Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman

Joslyn House Revisited

October 21, 2025·27 min·2 clips

Fifteen friends sang a dying man to his death in a Vermont group home — and Arlene calls it 'just like heaven.'

Host Erica Heilman opens by explaining she is revisiting a favorite older story while working on nine new episodes. The story is set at Jocelyn House in Randolph, Vermont, a large shared home for older adults that is explicitly not a nursing home or assisted living facility. Up to 20 residents live independently, each with their own room, access to three meals a day, and rent of $1,980 a month. Arlene Wright and her daughter Becky manage the house and provide personal attention but not medical care; nurses visit separately when needed. Arlene describes founding the house in 1992 with her husband Al through Randolph Neighborhood Housing, starting with one resident, her own furniture and dishes, and no operational experience. Within less than a year the house had 16 residents. A volunteer board member named Chris Sprague would show up with desserts and once a vacuum cleaner. Arlene traces her motivation to her years as a hospital nurse, where she saw firsthand how isolated older people became at home. Becky identifies isolation as the single greatest threat to elderly wellbeing, noting that many people resist leaving their own homes due to stigma or habit. Several residents speak in their own voices. Kathy, a retired school cafeteria worker who lost two husbands, moved to Jocelyn House after realizing her son drove past her apartment six times a day without stopping. Arnold, in his third week at the house, calls it the answer to a prayer after years of apartment isolation. Donna, who lost two husbands in 1981 and 1990, describes living alone in a beautiful house as pure awful and says she never wants to return. A resident explains that watching Wheel of Fortune in her room at Jocelyn House feels different from watching it alone because she knows someone nearby cares. The house is furnished with residents' own belongings, and Becky describes the emotional significance of each piece — a dish cabinet from an old farmhouse, a lamp that belonged to a man named Richard. Arlene addresses the difficult reality that some residents eventually need nursing home care, describing how the whole household is prepared together when someone has to leave. She notes that fewer residents than expected have needed to move to nursing homes, attributing this to the stimulation and mutual care within the house. The episode's most striking passage is Arlene's account of a resident named David who died at the house two years prior, surrounded by roughly 15 friends from his music group who played the organ, sang to him in the solarium, and stayed through the night. Arlene calls it beautiful and says it brought out the best in people. She reflects that love is evident in the house and that residents genuinely love one another. One resident closes with a reflection on being at the peak of life's hill and wanting to spend remaining years in a beautiful setting with people to talk to. Heilman notes that 16 people currently live at the house and four rooms are available.

As heard by us

A tender house portrait about aging, loneliness, and the relief of living near other people.

Joslyn House Revisited returns to a Randolph, Vermont house where older people live independently together rather than in a nursing home or assisted living facility.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

Listen if you want a quiet house story about older people living independently together in Randolph, Vermont.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Rumble Strip