PENNSWOOD’S SEVEN FOUNDERS were all “weighty” Quakers who had some connection with George School, either as students and/or as George School board members. They were also life-long friends and knew each other socially. Each was multi-talented and civic-minded. They shared a commitment to the creation of a caring, values-based, intentional community for adults 65 and older, built in 1980 on land contiguous to Newtown Friends School (est. 1948) and George School (est. 1893). Some of them mortgaged their own homes at the early stages of Pennswood’s financing, and many eventually became residents as well.
Pennswood created a Founders Garden in 2022 to honor them, with a fountain representing each founder and a plaque with their names. Now here are their faces and their stories.
Profiles:
45th Anniversary Exhibit Openings
Community
Richard Yarnall
Robert Teel
George Otto
Barbara Jacobson
