Monthly Archives: September 2018

Let’s pick for our neighbors this apple harvest season

Posted on Thursday, September 27, 2018 by No comments yet

The Vermont Foodbank reminds us to visit one of Vermont’s orchards this season and Pick for Your Neighbor!   Front Porch Forum is pleased to sponsor this yearly initiative to help our neighbors.  So let’s work together to help increase the amount of fresh produce available for Vermonter’s facing hunger and support our local orchards.  To see a list of participating orchards visit https://www.vtfoodbank.org/event/pickforyourneighbor

Postings which generate response

Posted on Tuesday, September 25, 2018 by No comments yet

From small businesses to larger non-profits and ad agencies, many agree that Front Porch Forum gets results.
“Our response has been HUGE! Thank you so much for helping us meet our recruitment goals!” • Dana at UVM College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

“The response rate of people who have said they saw the ad on FPF has been notable! So all good news!”  • Nilda with Kerr Advertising

“Where do you advertise for your Burlington business? Front Porch Forum is a free, easy way to advertise.”  Alignable member, Kate, shared her thoughts under “Coffee Shop Buzz”

 

Better Informed Communities

Posted on Friday, September 14, 2018 by No comments yet

Front Porch Forum Members Trust Their Neighbors.

 “When it comes to informing neighbors, was there really life before FPF?”  “Our community garden is thriving in its 4th season, largely because gardeners and supportive community members heard about it on Front Porch Forum. On FPF, we learn what our neighbors are thinking and doing. We participate in offerings we wouldn’t otherwise have known about. We avoid hazards we might have stumbled into if uninformed. We sell, buy, and give all manner of goods and services. I look forward to reading every issue. My responses range among curious, amused, concerned, angry, delighted, relieved, gobsmacked, inspired, and more. It takes a lot of worthy content to stimulate so much response repeatedly over time.”  • Sheryl in Montpelier

Connecting with neighbors and building local community begins with being better informed. FPF stimulates that in spades. Neighbors who use Front Porch Forum to communicate are more aware of who lives around them, stay better informed about what’s happening in their communities, and are more prepared to face challenges and times of crisis.

“FPF exists to help communities become more resilient,“ says FPF co-founder, Michael Wood-Lewis. “Neighbors who know each other and communicate about what’s happening locally are far more likely to be better prepared to face tough times.”

You’ve got to know that a local issue is bubbling up if you’re going to be involved. For many Vermonters, that starts on their neighborhood or town FPF. Even knowing about the weekend’s yard sales or school sporting events via FPF leads people to getting more face-to-face time with neighbors.This leads to more connection and more involvement. Get on the local grapevine. Sign up for your local FPF. Read, and then share your perspective in a posting to neighbors.

Bree, librarian at the Westford Public Library, uses Front Porch Forum regularly to reach their patrons. From updates, special event notices and library closings, she finds FPF “reliable and easy to use. FPF is the social media outlet that reaches different generations of patrons – appealing to the whole town rather than a certain demographic or “friend” group.”

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded an independent third-party, Network Impact, to design, implement and analyze an online survey of 132,188 Front Porch Forum members in March 2017. 13,086 Vermonters completed this 20-minute survey. With a 99% confidence level, the survey results represent the full FPF membership.

IRS Scam Calls

Posted on Wednesday, September 12, 2018 by 1 comment

A local police department warns neighbors and provides tips on Front Porch Forum.

“We have received several calls from elderly citizens recently regarding fraudulent “robo calls” (recorded automated phone calls) from someone claiming the recipients of the calls have not paid their taxes. They threaten police action if a payment is not made immediately.

Neither the Internal Revenue Service nor the Vermont Department of Taxes will make contact by phone and demand immediate payment for unpaid taxes. Local police, sheriff’s departments, and state police are not involved in enforcing payments of federal or state taxes.

Should you receive a call like this, do not confirm or give out personal information, simply hang up and make a report to the Vermont Attorney General’s Office at the Consumer Assistance Program site below:

http://ago.vermont.gov/cap/

You can sign up for scam alerts from the Vermont Attorney General’s Office at this site:

http://ago.vermont.gov/consumer-assistant-program-scam-alerts/

Information on this specific scam from the Internal Revenue Service:

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-urges-public-to-stay-alert-for-scam-phone-calls

Please contact your elderly friends and family members and inform them of this scam.
• 
Michael with the Montpelier Police Department

Share this info on your own FPF!