Branching out
Rooted in community, growing together, Branching Tree is committed to providing inclusive housing and meaningful daily experiences for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Massachusetts. We foster independence, dignity, and well-being. We empower individuals to lead fulfilling lives through strong community connections and a true sense of belonging.
Located in Williamsburg, MA, just 10 minutes outside of Northampton on 12.5 acres surrounded by 288 acres of preservation land, learn more about Branching Tree and the inclusive community that we’re creating, and why we’re creating it.
An inclusive Community
Values at heart
Branching Tree community is committed to creating a true sense of community, not simply filling a service slot or offering a room. Each person is known, valued, and missed when they're not there. They are a part of the setting.
Daily rhythms prioritize connection, with shared meals and welcoming common spaces. Relationships are nurtured beyond the service system, creating a full and diverse social circle, and ensuring decisions are made with individuals, not just for them.
Belonging over placement
Supports are designed with and around each individual, honoring unique preferences, strengths, dreams, and needs. Every person actively shapes their own life and services at Branching Tree community.
Person-centered supports
Relationships are essential to well-being, joy, and community life. We cultivate deep, reciprocal friendships in and out of our community that enrich every day.
Meaningful relationships
Dignity & respect
Interdependence
We believe everyone thrives from mutual support and shared community life, creating Interdependence within our community.
Families, self-advocates, and allies co-create this vision and its future. People with disabilities and their families hold real voice and power in shaping the community through shared decision-making.
Shared leadership & decision-making
We honor each individual’s gifts, passions, history, and hopes, seeing the whole person beyond a diagnosis.
Respect for the whole person
Sustainability and stewardship
We care for our resources, land, and relationships with intention and love.
Why Branching Tree?
We’ve created Branching Tree because we believe in belonging over placement. Across Massachusetts, there’s a housing crisis for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Not nearly enough housing options are rooted in connection, choice, and community. Families often wait years for placements, only to find that availability is prioritized over individuality, and routine is prioritized over relationships.
Branching Tree is a small, inclusive, person-centered community where adults with and without disabilities live, grow, and thrive together. Our housing models combines a shared living philosophy with group home supports and self-directed choices. We’re not just creating housing, we’re cultivating a home environment with connection, choice, and contribution. At Branching Tree, we believe that every person deserves more than just a placement, they deserve belonging.
Events & Updates
Branching Tree Welcomes Erin Lynch to the Board of Directors
Branching Tree is proud to announce the election of Erin Lynch to the Board of Directors. Erin currently serves as Gift Officer and Communications Manager at House of Possibilities (HOPe), where she supports mission-driven fundraising and meaningful community engagement. She originally joined HOPe as an administrative intern and, since 2021, has contributed across both programmatic and advancement efforts.
Erin began working with people with disabilities in middle school through Special Olympics, an organization she remains deeply connected to in her 18th season of involvement. She currently serves as a program coordinator and coach for the Milton/Quincy program and, in recognition of her long-standing commitment, received the 2024 Community Impact Award from Special Olympics Massachusetts.
Erin holds a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from The Catholic University of America and a Master’s degree in Public Policy and Administration from UMass Amherst. Her commitment to disability services is both personal and professional, and she is deeply engaged in inclusive community-building efforts. She is actively involved with The Arc of Massachusetts’ Pathways to Friendship group through their inclusion networks, with a passion for creating meaningful connections between people with and without disabilities.
Outside of her professional work, Erin enjoys staying active, attending musicals, and continuing to give back to her community. She serves on the Development Committee for College Light Opera Company (CLOC) in Falmouth, MA, and volunteers as a feline caregiver at Quincy Animal Shelter.
“Erin’s long history of creating connections with people with disabilities and direct experience with engaging in inclusive community building will help foster the culture of Branching Tree.” Dotty Foley, Co-founder of Branching Tree, explained that “She will play a key role in working directly with residents and residential co-workers to create life sharing opportunities. Erin is an essential addition to the Branching Tree Board of Directors and we’re so appreciative that she’s joined our community.”