Gloria Major-Brown plotted what she thought was the perfect retirement plan before giving up her job in real estate two years ago. A resident of this picturesque and highly affluent town for nearly 50 years, Ms. Major-Brown figured she would retire to Meadow Ridge, a continuing-care community in nearby Redding.

Having sat on the board that helped plan the facility, she knew she would enjoy maintenance-free living, a ready-made social life and, if she got the apartment she wanted, a great hillside view.

When the time came, however, Meadow Ridge, about a 30-minute drive from New Canaan, suddenly looked much farther away. “When push came to shove,” said Ms. Major-Brown, a widow, “I just wasn’t ready to leave New Canaan.” 

Since then, she has found an alternative closer to home. After selling her house, she bought a condominium in town and joined a board planning a different kind of retirement community, called Staying Put in New Canaan. In order to take up residence in this one, she won’t actually have to move again.

Staying Put — one of a rapidly growing number of so-called virtual villages for older people — will upon opening next year envelope its residents wherever they live within the town.

A nonprofit dues-paying membership organization, the “village” is actually a townwide support network designed to help older residents stay in their own homes as long as possible. The group’s aim is to help meet local demand for retiree housing in a town with few other options, organizers say.

“There is basically no new housing being built for that market,” said Tom Ferguson, a retired resident who is on Stay Put’s board.

The organization is putting together lists of reliable, prescreened contractors available for home repairs; it is also negotiating reduced rates with home-nursing agencies and lining up volunteers willing to drive members to doctor appointments or to pick up groceries. 

The only paid staff member is the executive director, Jane Nyce. Members will be encouraged to offer up their skills and talents too, as volunteers.

“It’s not a government thing, or a company seeking a business opportunity,” said Mr. Ferguson, but rather a “grass-roots effort.” 

This village concept, which began with Beacon Hill Village in Boston about six years ago, is catching on all over the country because it fills a crucial need, experts say.

In Connecticut, for example, middle-class elderly residents often have trouble getting the help they need at home because they don’t qualify for state-financed services for the poor, but at the same time are not wealthy enough to pay for all the services themselves, said Candace Clinger, a social worker at the Hospital of St. Raphael in New Haven. 

Ms. Clinger is working with the Rev. Edward Dobihal, founder of the chaplaincy program at Yale-New Haven Hospital and a founding member of Connecticut Hospice, to set up a virtual village in Hamden called Aging at Home. Similar efforts are under way in numerous Connecticut towns, including Greenwich, Westport, Darien, New Milford and Orange. 

Starting up a community-supported organization is easier in well-heeled towns like New Canaan, where local donors previously underwrote the creation of the nonprofit Waveny Care Center, a comprehensive health-care facility for the elderly. While the Hamden group hopes to keep dues down to $50 a year by relying on grant support, Staying Put is able to charge $360 a year ($480 for couples).

Yet organizers say the village isn’t just another luxury for New Canaanites. Rather, they say, it is a necessity in a town without a complex like Meadow Ridge to accommodate its increasingly elderly population (currently about 13 percent of all residents are 65 or older). 

Most new construction in New Canaan consists of large houses designed for families.

Even within condominium complexes, single-level living is in short supply. “Most of the condos are town houses,” said Barbara Cleary, broker-owner of Barbara Cleary’s Realty Guild, in New Canaan, “because it’s more profitable to build up. You do have some masters on the first floor, but there are not enough to meet the requests.”

Whether they prefer to stay in their homes or simply don’t have any other option, the elderly often find home maintenance becoming not only burdensome but also dangerous. 

“A home of a traditional type becomes a hazard zone as you get older,” said Dr. David Brown, 87, a board member instrumental in developing town services for the elderly. “But the utility of the home can be extended greatly with nursing and other services.” 

By staying at home in a familiar neighborhood, residents are able to maintain old connections and interact with people of all ages, rather than with just other elderly people, Ms. Nyce said. Staying Put will organize regular get-togethers and outings to help keep members engaged with the community. 

“You want to get people out,” she said. “The more connected you are, the better your health and outlook.” 

The organization will draw the line at some requests. When it comes to financial advice or legal referrals, for example, members will have to look elsewhere. Nor will Staying Put extend services outside of New Canaan or to residents under 50. 

Their goal is to recruit 150 members by the end of the year. Hundreds of residents have turned out for informational meetings, but so far about 50 have formally signed on.

Those on the fence are often reluctant to acknowledge that they might need the services, Mr. Ferguson said.

When he hears aging parents confidently predict they will be able to rely on their kids for help, he has to smile, because, he said, “I don’t know if anyone’s asked the kids what they think.”