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Re-Forming Formed: 1967 Established: 1967
Open Circle
Culpeper, Virginia,
United States
Etlan, Virginia,
United States
our forest land
 [We just discovered that our email address was not working from June-October 2009. It's working now. If you tried to contact us during that time, we apologize, and please send us your message again.]
Open Circle has been around (under various names) for about 40 years, living and working in a rather spontaneous non-organization based on personal affinity. We don’t really believe in names (“Open Circle” is the label we are using now to help you find us).
Our overall approach to life is to make it into a game—a challenging, educational, and fun process that changes from week to week, and even day to day. Members often “volunteer” to each other, informally rotating leadership roles depending on the project at hand, the experience of the persons involved, and the prevailing mood of the moment.
We own a large mixed-use building in the historic downtown section of Culpeper, Virginia, and a cabin on 90 acres of forestland bordering the Shenandoah National Park at the base of Old Rag Mountain. These days, we spend most of our time in Culpeper, and one or two days a week at our cabin. We often share communal meals, pool most income, assets, and other resources, grow food with our friends in several different gardens, and operate various consulting businesses. We thrive on challenges to our creativity.
Our cooperative lifestyle is a fertile arena for personal growth. Our goal is artistic tribal living where we foster mutual trust while working together effectively as a team. Our current interests and experiments include sustainable living, green and natural building, organic food production, social inventions, Nonviolent Communication, music, and fiber arts.
Our day-at-a-time philosophy includes commitment to our community, loyalty to each other, group decision making to coordinate our actions, and generating an ongoing economic surplus. We continue to evolve based on ideas of everyone in the community, which could include you, if you join us.
 
Contact:
Rannie Winn
PO Box 1416
Culpeper, Virginia 22701 United States

Email This Community!
Former/Other Names: The Finders, The Visioneers
Last Updated:7/12/2010
 
Visitors Accepted
Visitor Process: Open Circle welcomes visitors who share our zest for learning and adventure. We would enjoy hearing from you—if you are friendly, open minded, and resourceful. Let's start with an email.
Network Affiliations:
Fellowship for Intentional Community
Statement of Housing Non-discrimination:
No Answer Provided
Population
Members(adults and children):
4
Non-member Residents:
1
Open to new members:
Yes
Government
Decision Making:
Other
(group decision making based on trust and personal affinity)
Identified Leader:
No
Leadership Core Group:
Yes
(Our core group is based on affinity, committment, communication, and actions.)
Labor and Money
Financial Style:
Other
(Most of us share 100% of our income and assets. All members contribute to the pool based on their individual situations. We're open to connection on different levels.)
Open to Members with Pre-existing Debt:
Yes
Labor Contribution:
Expected
(We expect every member to make labor contributions each according to their resources and abilities. We aim for balance and harmony, rather than a set number of hours.)
Join Fee:
No
Regular Fees:
No
(We expect every member to contribute financially to the pool, each according to their resources and abilities. We aim for a balanced financial relationship, rather than specific fees or dues.)
Land and Buildings
Other
(We have rural and small town properties.)
Area:
90 acres (36.4 hectares)
Land Owned By:
The community
(Individual communitity members legally own the land, but we consider it to be owned by the community.)
Number of Residences:
2
Cohousing:
No
Food, etc.
Percentage of Food Grown:
21-50%
Share Community Meals:
Nearly all meals
Dietary Choice or Restrictions:
Diet is up to each individual
(We aim for a healthy diet.)
Dietary Practice:
Other
(Dietary practice is up to each individual.)
Alcohol Use:
Used occasionally
(in moderation)
Tobacco Use:
Prohibited
(You must go outside to smoke.)
Social Factors
Common Spiritual Practices:
No Answer
(Everyone is free to follow their own spiritual path.)
Educational Style(s):
Other
(We believe in life-long learning through self-education.)
 
 
our forest land
our stream
compost bins
our cabin
one afternoon's harvest
our multi-use building
roof garden
roof garden
dinner
70-foot sqash vine
our neighborhood
Culpeper, with the Blue Rige Mountians in the distance, as seen from our roof
Click an image to see it full size.


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Comment from hippyatheart75 on 1/10/2009 (Reader Rating: 0)
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Beautiful pictures.
Blessings

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We happily link to the following organizations, all of whom share our strong commitment to promoting community and a more cooperative world:
Cohousing The Federation of Egalitarian Communities - Communes Coop Community Cooperative Sustainable Intentional North American Students of Cooperation Global Ecovillage Network