Yearly Archives: 2019
A Pet Owner’s Best Friend
Every Front Porch Forum member knows that lost and found pet postings are common on their neighborhood forums, most often including notes of gratitude and tales of happy reunions. See this great note shared by Emily T. on the Craftsbury FPF after she spotted a beagle on the loose:
“EVERYONE — Please take advantage of Front Porch Forum if your dog runs off this winter. We are lucky to have this resource and it has become a pet owner’s best friend. It gets SO COLD this time of year and no one wants to think of a beloved pet having to spend the night away from home. Please post and let your neighbors help you find your pup! (or kitty, or rooster as the case may be).”
If you’ve lost a pet or spotted someone else’s, be sure to check your neighborhood forum and post about it!
Town officials in New York learn about FPF
“Talk of the Towns & Topics,” a publication for the Association of Towns of the State of New York, shared news of Front Porch Forum‘s expansion to parts of upstate New York.
FPF has served Vermont towns since 2006, and people use FPF for all sorts of things. This brief daily connection helps neighbors become better informed and more involved in the life of their towns.
“Technology can be used to divide us or bring us together. I really admire the way Front Porch Forum uses the Internet to bring us together. It’s not formulated to keep you in front of your screen. FPF urges you to read the local postings and then get going, and go out and be with your neighbors. That is really important and constructive in terms of building community and building democracy.” • Susan Clark, a Vermont town moderator
“I really love your service and its natural connection to local governments” • Libby with the Assoc. of Towns of the State of New York
Random acts of kindness while shopping in VT
The holiday spirit is year-round amongst our Front Porch Forum neighbors!
“Imagine my happy surprise when I came to the register to pay for lunch for my two kiddos and their two kiddo friends … and someone had already paid for it all! It was so appreciated and so genuinely delightful, I have been smiling about it all day. Thank you, sweet neighbor — whoever you are! Not only did we get to enjoy those delicious bagels, but you also gave those four kids and me such a great opportunity to talk about kindness and generosity. It was a real gift-that-keeps-giving kind of scenario. I’m already scheming ways to pay it forward.” • Emily in Burlington
“To the woman who bought my groceries at Shaws that Tuesday night: You would not tell me your name. You made my month, literally. Thank you so much for your kindness.” • Lisette in Montpelier
“To the person who put a sunflower on my bicycle outside Healthy Living Monday, My Thanks! You totally made my day when I came out from supper at the cafe! Tucked it in my brake cable on the frame & it made it home in good shape & now is in a tall thin vase by my computer screen! I love it! Thank you, thank you for that random act of kindness!!” • Kathleen in South Burlington
Is FPF lost in your inbox? Try our NEW Mobile App!
Exciting news you can now use FPF’s new mobile app to connect with your neighbors. The app makes it easy and quick to keep up on community goings-on, post to your neighbors, and more.
- Stay logged in – no more trying to remember your password
- Easy to view multiple days, see neighboring forums, and search past postings
- Post to your FPF on the go
- Get notified the moment a new issue is available – be first in line for that free toboggan!
Download FPF’s new mobile app from the Apple® and Google Play® app stores today.
P.S. Of course, you’re still welcome to access your local FPF via email or our website too!
Neighborly connections through FPF
Those new to a community often turn to Front Porch Forum to find connections. What they find are wonderful neighbors!
“I just moved to the neighborhood a few weeks ago! I am wondering if anyone is crafty or interested in crafts. I am hoping to have craft nights with others and maybe share techniques, catalogues, favorite tool, etc. Please be in touch if you would like to get together and talk crafts.” • Kelley in Essex Junction
“Hi FPF community, You all are the reason we chose to settle here and raise our family! The support you have shown after the loss of one third of my laying hens to a couple of domestic dogs, has truly been humbling. I thank you all for your kind words, your offers of help, suggestions & empathy. What a tremendous community, with wonderful neighbors, we all live in!!” • Deborah & Tim in East Hardwick
The unfiltered story of FPF on “Start Here”
Front Porch Forum co-founder, Michael Wood-Lewis, was recently interviewed on the Vermont Centers for Emerging Technologies (VCET), “Start Here” podcast, which shares the stories of active, aspiring and accidental entrepreneurs.
“Featuring Vermont’s most influential business leaders, Start Here bridges the gap between entertainment and inspiration by presenting the unfiltered stories of today’s top innovators. Everybody starts somewhere – why not Start Here?”
Click below and have a listen!
Small businesses do well using FPF
Locally owned businesses get support from their neighbors on Front Porch Forum:
“Thank you everyone on FPF who has recommended and or used SR Kiely Design-Build Inc. This has resulted in a fantastic year for our company.” • Stephen in Bristol
“At last Saturday’s Farmers Market a nurse walked by our spot and said you sure use Front Porch Forum a lot aren’t you doing very well. We are doing well because we use FPF.” • Charlie at Floating Bridge Family Farm
“We are getting a wonderful response to our pop ups. We’ve had vendors signing up through the ads from FPF. And then they spread the word to others, which is great for everyone.” • Vicki at the River Garden, Brattleboro
The cold is here…. let’s Button Up Vermont!
Temperatures are falling, snow is on the ground and the forecast calls for slick roads. That means it’s weatherization season, too. Button up your home this year and stop heating the outdoors.
Have you heard about the incentives? Vermonters can get 50% off weatherization projects (up to $4,000) and cover the rest with free 0% interest financing on a Home Energy Loan from Efficiency Vermont.
Attend a local Button Up VT workshop and learn how to lower your heating bill, save energy, and make your home more comfortable at ButtonUpVermont.org.
Front Porch Forum is proud to be Button Up Vermont’s Community Partner, helping our neighbors be ready for winter.
Paying it forward
The Holiday Season is fast approaching, but on Front Porch Forum we see neighbors paying it forward year-round. See this very generous posting from a Montpelier neighbor looking to pass on the goodwill in her life:
“Hi neighbors! I’ve just been to Costco for the first time since moving to Central Vermont a couple of years ago, and am super happy with the nutritious and relatively inexpensive food I was able to purchase!
As I’ve been experiencing some stressful food, fuel, and housing insecurity this past year, I’ve been incredibly grateful to local friends and organizations who have generously helped me fill up a tank of gas so I could get to work, share some of their shelf-stable food so I wouldn’t go hungry, and more!
I’d like to pay it forward please let me know if any or all of the following (fresh, refrigerated) would be helpful to you, and when and where I could bring it to you…”
Get inspired to connect with your neighbors and you might find surprising ways to support one another!
Who needs Uber when you’ve got great neighbors?
Neighbors ask and receive help for rides regularly on Front Porch Forum.
“I am in awe of this community I live in! I received 7 offers, and 2 more responses, to my last FPF posting requesting a ride to an upcoming medical appointment. It’s easy to ask for referrals for roofers, gardeners, etc., but- at least for me- not that easy to ask for more personal help. This was an exercise in acceptance for me, and an uplifting belief in the goodness that exists in the world, and especially in our little corner of the world. Thank you all. I am deeply touched.” • Jane in Burlington
“I am still in the midst of seeking transportation to a series of appointments. I’ve been able to find the help I need, so far. It was heartwarming to read Jane’s posting. If I need these rides again I will post on FPF. Kindness is everything. Thank-you everyone for your help.” • Judy in Burlington
“Due to the generosity of so many in this amazing community, I was emailed no less than 7 times by locals offering to run me up to the airport tomorrow. This is actually no surprise at all; this community ROCKS !! I’m all set – and I thank all of you so much for the offers of assistance…Cheers!” • George in Stowe
About Blog
Ghost of Midnight is an online journal about fostering community within neighborhoods, with a special focus on Front Porch Forum (FPF). My wife, Valerie, and I founded FPF in 2006... read more
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