Category Archives: Community Building
Community love
Love is in the air… and our towns!
“Thanks for all you do. In this increasingly chaotic and lonely world, you help us build community in our lovely town.” • Bruce in Burlington
New survey in Vermont reveals more trust among neighbors
Tapping 145,000 Front Porch Forum members across Vermont, a recent independent, large-scale survey revealed that FPF members know and trust their neighbors at double national averages. They also have more hope for the future of their local communities. More than 15,000 FPF members across Vermont responded to the survey.
78% of survey respondents say that their neighbors trust each other vs. 38% of Americans that say they trust their neighbors.
“It makes you proud to live in a place with such a strong sense of community.” • John in Panton
The new survey, conducted by Network Impact and supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, also found a similar pattern when asking related questions:
85% of survey respondents in Vermont are optimistic about the community where they live vs. 44% of Americans who feel hopeful about the future of their neighborhoods.
69% of survey respondents in Vermont know most of their neighbors vs. 26% of Americans who can recognize most of their neighbors.
“The recent survey shows that 89% of respondents say their neighbors help others, and 79% say that their neighbors pitch in on community projects. Being neighborly is paid forward in Vermont… to everyone’s benefit.” • Michael Wood-Lewis, Co-Founder and CEO of Front Porch Forum
This survey was commissioned by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Front Porch Forum, and conducted by Network Impact. More than 15,000 FPF members (out of 132,000 surveyed) across Vermont responded in March 2017, yielding a 99% confidence level in the results. See here for Network Impact’s report about their survey.
Invite People You Know to Join FPF… Win an iPad!
People join Front Porch Forum when they hear about it from someone they know. Spread the word to your Vermont and Washington County, NY contacts now through mid-day Friday, and you could win a new iPad!
Use FPF’s “Invite Neighbors” feature to invite as many people as you like (FPF is available in every town and neighborhood in Vermont, as well as in Cambridge, Jackson, White Creek and Argyle, NY). You’ll be entered into the raffle one time for each person you invite this way who actually signs up for a new FPF account by Groundhog Day, Feb. 2.
Invite more people to increase your odds of winning a new iPad! Try people from any walk of life… work, school, community, church, family, friends, social media, clubs and more. If your local FPF is already loaded with active members, think about people you know in other parts of Vermont and upstate NY who would be interested.
People tend to love their local FPF… so share FPF and give the gift of community. Thanks much!
Details:
Any current FPF member may enter by using the “Invite Neighbor” feature starting Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018, and ending noon ET, Friday, Feb. 2, 2018. Every new member that registers by the deadline due to your “Invite Neighbor” invitation will enter you one time in the iPad random drawing. Multiple entries per person are encouraged.
To enter:
- Go to https://FrontPorchForum.com and click LOGIN (if not already logged in)
- Click MY ACCOUNT
- Click INVITE FRIENDS TODAY under “Pitch In”
- Enter one legitimate email address of a person you know in each row.
- Click ADD ANOTHER if you want to enter more than three email addresses. (Don’t worry if you’re not sure whether your friend is already an FPF member… our system will NOT send invitations to email addresses already used by FPF accounts.)
- Click SEND INVITE to finish.
The winner of the random drawing will be presented with a gift certificate to Small Dog Electronics with sufficient funds to purchase a new iPad 9.7-inch 32GB Wi-Fi.
We will verify that the iPad winner adhered to the letter and the spirit of this contest (so please play nice!). It’s all about spreading the word about Front Porch Forum to more local folks — helping neighbors connect and build community.
Other ways to stir up interest in your FPF are located here: https://frontporchforum.com/about-us/pitch-in
Connecting with neighbors through the library
Librarians have been making great use of Front Porch Forum for over 10 years!
“Here’s your chance to get out of the house and meet your fellow Moretownites at this after hours get together at the library. Bring a snack to share (you got too many holiday cookies perhaps?), and be prepared to play Apples to Apples as our first game.”
• Librarian, Moretown Memorial Library, Moretown
“The Friends of the Castleton Free Library are thankful to be able to use Front Porch Forum to connect and share with our community. FPF certainly is a great asset to our community!” • Liz in Castleton
Over 90 librarians participate on FPF. Does yours?
Pulled out of a ditch…. and thankful
Across the state, Front Porch Forum members are thankful for their neighbors help.
“A huge thank you to the many neighbors – 5 in 15 minutes! – who stopped this evening to see if I needed help pulling my car out of the ditch. I thank everyone for offering your help. I feel so lucky to live in this town, in this state, where people are truly kind.” • Martha in Shelburne
“Thank you so much to the kind, on-the-spot firefighter who just pulled me out of the ditch on the side of the road! Its dark and cold and you still stopped to offer assistance to someone you didn’t even know. Its people like you that keep our communities going and maintain my faith in the goodness of humanity.” • Charlotte in Hinesburg
“I got stuck in road-edge snow. At least a dozen neighbors stopped to offer help, and at least one called police, who came to stand by while I waited for the AAA tug out. Many thanks to the S Burlington police officer and to the many thoughtful neighbors.” • Mike in Shelburne
“Sliding into a ditch was made much easier thanks to the help of several good neighbors. My daughter and I are so fortunate to live in a place with good neighbors, ready and willing to lend a hand. SO grateful!” • Lesley & Molly in Plainfield
“My husband’s car ended up in the ditch at the bottom of our driveway after the recent storm. Our wonderful neighbor offered to pull us out, which he did successfully. Thank you Bruce for taking the time to stop and assist us. Your help was greatly appreciated!” • Roxanne in Starksboro
When your neighbors come to the rescue, give them a shout-out on FPF!
Strike a difference for Rutland county youth
Join us as we team up with the Mentor Connector to #STRIKEADIFFERENCE at the 11th Annual Mentor Bowl on Jan. 27, 2018! 100% of the money raised directly supports mentoring for Rutland County youth, and Front Porch Forum is proud to be a sponsor. Create a team and join the fun today!
Giving thanks for donuts, dinner and pretty lights
Stories of generosity abound on Front Porch Forum….
“My husband, baby and I were eating dinner tonight and when our check came the waitress said it had already been paid for. Thank you so much to the couple who bought our dinner and wished us a Merry Christmas on the way out!” • Nicole in South Burlington
“I went to the drive through window this morning and ordered coffee. When I drove around to pay, the young lady at the window told me a gentleman had left a bunch of money to pay for the next few cars’ orders until the money ran out! “ • Mary in Northfield
“The village looks so pretty at night now with all the lit Christmas trees. Thanks to the church and everyone who contributed to this lovely Christmas scenery. I don’t know who you are, but it sure is appreciated.” • Amanda in Cabot
Tales of the Christmas Spirit
Tis the season to share on Front Porch Forum…..
“The other day a young man arrived with his son and spotted a book he held reverently in his hands as out loud he wished he had some money to put this book on lay-away. Suddenly there was a small voice added to our conversation. His son asked me if one dollar would be enough to hold the book for his father. The father said to the boy, “This is why I love you so much.” And the bookseller agreed to hold the rare book for one dollar down. The youngster reached into his pocket, pulled out 4 quarters, and we sealed the agreement. If this isn’t a spiritual time of year I don’t know what is…..”
“Eleven folks who read my story came forward and wanted to help this family purchase the books on hold. We have a truly generous and thoughtful community and I am proud to be a part of it.”
• Ben at the Country Bookshop in Plainfield
From the outpouring of generosity in this community of book-lovers an idea developed to generate a fund to help other needy families to purchase books. What tales can you share on FPF that can help others?
Our disconnects in values, relationships and social fabric
danah boyd was quoted on Wired yesterday…
“[W]e have a cultural problem, one that is shaped by disconnects in values, relationships, and social fabric. Our media, our tools, and our politics are being leveraged to help breed polarization by countless actors who can leverage these systems for personal, economic, and ideological gain.”
She went on to state “How do you reknit society? Society is produced by the social connections that are knit together. The stronger those networks, the stronger the society. We have to make a concerted effort to create social ties, social relationships, social networks in the classic sense that allow for strategic bridges across the polis so that people can see themselves as one.”
“Part of what is really collapsing here is that the networks have become too fragmented and too polarized. Technology doesn’t help; it simply magnifies the poles. This is dangerous and cyclical. Polarization leads to distrust and tribalism which leads to more polarization. So for me, the path forward, which requires business and the public sector and civil society working together, is about reconstructing the networks of America.”
In our own small way, this is Front Porch Forum‘s work… helping neighbors connect and build community… reconstructing networks of neighbors across political, class, racial and other boundaries.
Open discussions in our communities
We’re happy to see that Front Porch Forum is recommended and used by many to have important discussions on relevant town issues.
“I am really liking this thread on minimum wage. This kind of discussion is exactly what Front Porch Forum was designed for. We should be having a lot more of these kind of discussions as long as we can keep to the issues and not personalize the debate or attack those we disagree with. Our community and indeed our culture in general would be much better served if we had civil discussion and debate about important issues as though we were speaking face-to-face, FPF seems like an excellent vehicle to have those discussions.”
• Jeff, Town Energy Coordinator, Richmond
“The public must be better informed about this School Capital project. Information put on a school website is not adequate public outreach. We recommend Front Porch Forum as it is a primary source of local information for me and many others in the community.” • John in Morrisville
Reach out to your town officials on FPF!
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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