HANDORF-LANGENBERG, Germany — When 87-year-old Hubert Frilling died quietly in his sleep a year ago, the village beer hall he owned and ran for more than 60 years, “Zum Schanko,” looked set to die with him.

For generations the wood-paneled rooms of Schanko — Mr. Frilling’s nickname — had served Handorf-Langenberg, a village of 1,500 in northwest Germany, as a community center and extended living room for countless birthdays, baptisms and other gatherings with family and friends.

“The heart of Handorf-Langenberg has stopped beating,” the pastor told mourners who had packed the Church of St. Barbara, two blocks from the pub, for Mr. Frilling’s funeral last November.

But Maik Escherhaus, the head of the local sports club, and some friends had an idea to save Schanko by selling shares to residents, as well as those who had grown up in the village but moved away and anyone else who was interested.