Twin Oaks Community

Twin Oaks is an income-sharing community of 100 people living on 485 acres of farm and forestland in Virginia. Founded in 1967, our lifestyle reflects our values of egalitarianism, feminism and sustainability. We welcome scheduled visitors throughout the year. We are economically self-sufficient. Members work in our community businesses–making hammocks and chairs, indexing books, and making tofu. These businesses provide about one-third of our work; the rest goes into the tasks needed to support a rural village of 100 people–organic gardening, milking cows, equipment and building maintenance, office work, and more. Our work schedules of 42 hours each week are very flexible. In return for member’s labor, the community provides all basic needs, including housing, food, clothing, etc. Twin Oaks has an intricate community culture. Our everyday lives include many recreational activities–social and support groups, performances, music, games, dance, and art. Our culture values tolerance of diversity and sustainable living. We share our vehicles, we build our own buildings, and we share houses of 10-20 people. We do not have a group religion; our beliefs are diverse. We do not have a central leader; we govern ourselves by a form of democracy with responsibility shared among various managers and teams.
Some of us work actively for peace and justice, ecology, and feminism. Each summer we host a Women’s Gathering, a Queer Gathering and a Communities Conference; see our website for details. We offer a three-hour tour on many Saturday afternoons; please call during business hours or email to reserve a place. We welcome people to visit just for our Visitor Program, either for just the three weeks, or as a prerequisite to membership. Information about visiting is available on our website or by mail.