Category Archives: Civic Engagement
Making Vermont towns more transparent and engaged
#VT – As Front Porch Forum expands across Vermont, we occasionally run into local conflicts around transparency. In some cases it pits old guard town fathers and mothers who have run things their way for generations vs. citizens who want to know what’s going on, how decisions are being made, and how they might get involved.
Some local officials embrace the enhanced citizen interest that FPF can bring, while others resist or even reject it wholly. We had a selectboard and town manager withdraw from their town’s FPF in southern Vermont recently because their constituents were using their FPF to raise uncomfortable questions. They also decided to warn their public meetings at the last possible moment mandated by state law. In a different community, the town manager is taking a beating via FPF on local budget issues, but he tells me he’d much rather hear from his critics and be able to address their points — which he does via FPF — than not.
We see a similar pattern with citizens. Most see the value in more local discussion on the variety of topics that FPF engenders. But others grow frustrated when they read viewpoints that run counter to theirs… and unfortunately a small number quit. We see this from both the left and right of the political spectrum. We encourage folks not to retreat into their respective echo chambers, but to stay engaged with their neighbors. But it’s not simple or easy.
We’re eager to work with local public officials and citizens to help them get the most out of their FPF. We celebrate where this seems to be working well. We appreciate Jim, for example, for his FPF posting today…
Thanks to Front Porch Forum for making Hinesburg a more transparent town.
Oliver the Cat… Rethinking the Concept of Community in Jonesville
#VT – Gary shared the following on the Richmond Front Porch Forum last week…
If you ever go to the Jonesville post office, you’ve noticed a friendly cat there the last few months. Oliver was a stray who started hanging around and the folks in the post office and the antique store kindly started feeding him and giving him a place to rest.
Unfortunately one day recently it was noticed that Oliver was limping badly. He was taken to the vet and discovered he had broken bones, most likely from being hit by a car.
The McEvoys from the Antique store have been caring for him. He now has a cast on his leg, and a huge bill at the vet. If a bunch of people contribute a little cash to help Oliver out, that would be great.
The post office building has daily updates and photos of Oliver’s condition and progress. I took snapshots of the updates and posted them here: http://solarbus.org/oliver
And today Thom weighed in with…
Oliver is very thankful for the many generous donations we’ve accepted on his behalf. In addition to a shopping bag full of food and treats, a large stash of home-grown catnip and a few toys, we’ve raised $824.06! Dozens have given.
Gary’s webpage on Oliver has hugely expanded the population of those who know about Oliver. Just today, while returning from a visit with her father in Bennington, Hallie received two calls from out-of-state folks asking how they could donate to ‘The Oliver Fund.’ And more than a few others showed up at the store with donations.
In all honesty I’ve never been much of a ‘community-oriented’ person (although I am a sucker for pets, especially cats). But the response to Oliver has been so overwhelming it has forced me to rethink the concept of ‘community,’ especially when one of its own is in need…
Supporting Community Conversations
#VT #BTV – Thanks to all of our Front Porch Forum Supporting Members. Their contributions help us cover the costs associated with delivering our service to the 70 Vermont towns that we cover.
Please consider joining them by making a contribution today… click here. Thank you!
– Michael and the FPF team
“Thanks for Connecting Me to Great Neighbors!”
#VT – Early adopters of Front Porch Forum are often community-minded folks. So even before we reach a critical mass of members in a particular town or neighborhood, we might get 25 or 50 of the kind of people who volunteer a lot, organize events, and generally get things done locally.
When this happens we hear about it. “Thanks for helping me find the other people in town who want to take action to make this an even better place to live!” That was a comment we got last year. And today, we heard from Janice is St. Albans…
I want to thank Katrina and her family for loaning me the HOUSE-shaped cookie cutter – I was able to make over 2 dozen house shaped cookies which I decorated with hearts – for the Spectrum Youth & Family Services Sleep Out tonight in Burlington.
One of my former college classmates wanted friends to bake goodies that could be delivered to those sleeping out tonight to bring awareness to homelessness… I think many would be surprised at how many working homeless there are!! While there are organizations out there, like Spectrum, such as Pathways to Housing and the Vermont Affordable Housing Coalition – we need to take better care of each other – in Vermont and across the country. We all deserve a home.
A home is the basis for life – for being successful neighbors and citizens – for kids it’s having a SAFE and WARM place that is theirs and where they can concentrate on homework and getting good educations – so many important elements around having a HOME.
My friend is delivering all the cookies, brownies, muffins, etc. his friends baked tonight – with the requirement that if there is too much for all participating in the event that they have to PAY IT FORWARD and deliver/share with others in need – so maybe these simple cookies in the shape of a HOME/HOUSE – with a heart on them will make someone’s heart smile tonight!
Please consider looking up these other organizations and seeing how you can volunteer, donate supplies/equipment, or if you have a room to rent out or apartments you rent – think about making them as affordable as possible so there are few homeless.
Just my 2 cents worth – on a huge subject! Thanks Front Porch Forum for connecting me to my great neighbors.
Most vibrant FPF in Lamoille County?
#VT – Online community conversation is picking up in Lamoille County! See the photo of the Town Offices window in Morrisville… love the sign!
The Cambridge/Jeffersonville FPF is super vibrant with about 60% of local households signed up. Stowe, Johnson, and Morristown are going strong too. And Hyde Park, which launched just last week already has 120 households (out of 1,200) participating with more joining every day. And this just in from Cambridge FPF member Liz…
I posted a request for recommendations for a handy man to help us out and I got an overwhelming response!!! Thank you to every one!!! Front Porch Forum is the greatest. I am also on the Johnson FPF but I think the Cambridge one at present is more active. I look forward to reading it in the evening…
How long does it take for a new FPF to take hold?
#VT – In it’s first week, the Hyde Park Front Porch Forum attracted 100 members… a strong start for a town with 1,200 households.
And 25% of the households in East Montpelier are on board their FPF already, just three months after launch. And they’re putting it to great use. Here’s a note posted by Barbara today…
Hurrah for Front Porch Forum and the generous people of East Montpelier! Saturday we asked for a wheelchair and intercom and today we have both! We had four offers of wheelchairs and two offers of intercoms. Thank you all.
If you’d like to bring FPF to your town in Vermont, please enter your information on our home page, or contact Michael Wood-Lewis. (Here’s a map and list of our current coverage area.)
Hyde Park launches their Front Porch Forum
#VT – The Town and Village of Hyde Park, Vt., and several local co-sponsors pulled together to bring Front Porch Forum to their community. The official launch is tomorrow, March 19, 2012. Special thanks to…
• Town of Hyde Park
• Village of Hyde Park
• Hyde Park Community Community Circle
• Polow, Polow & Mahoney
• Carolyn Smiles
Front Porch Forum is now available in more than 70 Vermont towns (and one each in New York and New Hampshire!). Please send folks to FPF to sign up!
Seeking roofer recommendation?
#VT – Thanks to you FPF neighbors who sent recommedations for roofers. It’s like having a local “Angie’s List.” (only better).
That was posted on Front Porch Forum by Chris in Burlington’s North End today. We hear that kind of thing frequently. FPF members get lots of good results when they seek recommendations… and, best of all, they get to meet neighbors along the way.
More than half of U.S. seniors don’t know neighbors
Seniors in Vermont have long put their neighborhood Front Porch Forum to good use. Today, AARP reported on this growing trend…
According to a 2010 Pew Internet and American Life Project report, of nearly 2,300 surveyed, half ages 50-64 did not know their neighbors; the number was 52% for ages 65+.
So when I heard about free neighborhood websites, I stopped multitasking. They are a place where neighbors communicate online with others who live nearby about community issues (a new building project in the area, traffic concerns, a burglary, a favorite gardener, a family in need), post requests, and get to know one another. That often leads to face-to-face connections and new relationships.
According to Michael Wood-Lewis, cofounder of the Front Porch Forum, a neighborhood website in Burlington, Vt., there are about 20 similar start-ups around the country. Created in 2006, his is among the oldest and serves one-third of Vermont.
One of most recent entrants is the San Francisco-based Nextdoor, which debuted last October and is in more than 1,200 neighborhoods nationwide. In order to join one of these private social networks, you have to live in that neighborhood (except if you’re an adult child/caregiver) and when posting, use your full name. If there’s no neighborhood website, you can start one and invite neighbors to join.
What does this have to do with caregiving? These companies are seeing adult children, who are caregivers, or their parents or relatives, the care recipients, using it to enlist the help of others. Last winter, during a blizzard, an adult daughter living across town got on the Front Porch Forum website and asked her mother’s neighbors to check on her. Several went over to make sure she was okay and fed, while someone else shoveled her driveway and walk…
Arthur Goyette knows the value of good neighbors. His wife Betty died three years ago, but while she was battling cancer, his neighbors brought countless meals to their Caroline Street home. When the neighbors learned that Betty had always wanted to ride in a convertible, they found a dealership willing to loan them a car, and surprised the Goyettes with a Chrysler Sebring. When the couple drove down the street with the top down, people lined the block waving and taking pictures.
Remembering this time, the 71-year-old Goyette marvels that he barely knew some of the people who helped him. He might never have known them at all if it weren’t for an email newsletter called the Front Porch Forum, which serves the South End neighborhood known as the Five Sisters.
Goyette’s neighbors used the newsletter to organize support for the family. “If the web wasn’t there,” he says, “it never would have happened.”
Goyette is not the only South End resident who credits the 6-year-old Front Porch Forum with bolstering community. The FPF website lists testimonials from dozens of users who say they like the way this free online service helps them connect with others in the immediate area; of the 350 households in Five Sisters, 286 subscribe…
Thanks so, so much for posting the message about Operation Snow Shovel throughout Burlington. The response was incredible! Can you believe that I’ve heard from 57 people willing to volunteer to shovel? 57! (That’s in addition to the 33 permanent volunteers who shovel for a particular person each time it snows”“ many of them were recruited through Front Porch Forum, too.) A large percentage of volunteers said they’d heard about the need through their neighborhood forum.
As of right now, every single elderly or disabled person in need of help that contacted OSS has been accommodated. And those I’ve yet to hear from will get help quickly. What a wonderful resource these forums are! Many, many thanks!
And another one… Watching neighbors connect through Front Porch Forum is often both fascinating and moving. This post from today, e.g., adds to other evidence we’ve witnessed of people wanting and waiting for a chance to lend a helping hand to those around them.
My husband died from metastatic prostate cancer in October. I asked for help finding someone to snowblow my driveway [through her FPF neighborhood forum] and think I have found someone. Then I went away for a week and when I returned my leaves were raked and removed and items moved from around the house to the driveway. I don’t know who did this, but I have to think it was someone in the neighborhood and I wanted to say thank you.
This message comes from a suburban-style neighborhood where about a quarter of the 200 households signed up with Front Porch Forum in the first three months of operation. To further thank her neighbors, the writer goes on to share a warning:
You should also know that in July 2006 we had a house invasion during the daytime (2:30 pm, man with a ski-mask) and my husband’s pain medication was stolen ([he] was lying in bed at the time). While I was away in November, there was another break in. His remaining medications were taken too. There is no more medication in the house and it is now very much more secure, but be aware that this sort of thing happens even in our own “safe” neighborhood.
Many thanks to the kind-hearted and energetic people who helped me out.
The anwser to the request for snow-removal help for the coming winter is great. The mysterious leaf-rakers are even better. But it’s the willingness of the writer to share her loss, ask for help, and offer a constructive warning to her neighbors out of what must have been an awful experience that motivates us to make Front Porch Forum happen for more people and neighborhoods.
Better than a cesspool… Should Local Officials Engage Constituents Online?
#VT – The thing I’m noticing about the water in the village tonight is that as my kids are taking a bath, it smells like a chlorinated pool as far as about 6 feet from the bath tub.
I have no idea what this means. Better a chlorinated pool than a cesspool is how I choose to look at it.
I’m glad that public water supply quality is a topic of conversation on Front Porch Forum, and I do appreciate that town officials use the forum for disseminating information about it.
This was shared with 1,000 Bristol FPF members tonight by Gillian. Good for Bristol officials for engaging the public. We’re seeing more and more of this on FPF in towns across Vermont. I do know of one going the other direction… actually closing down communication with voters… but that’s the exception.
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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