Category Archives: Front Porch Forum

Tragedy Brings out Good, Better and Ugly

Posted on Tuesday, November 28, 2006 by • 1 comment

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.

Forums Nourish Neighborliness

Posted on Sunday, November 26, 2006 by • No comments yet

Anecdotes are piling up of increased neighborliness in areas with vibrant Front Porch Forums. People seem more willing to see those living around them as neighbors worth getting to know vs. strangers who happen to live a few doors away once an FPF neighborhood forum breaks the ice. Some such stories are collected on our testimonials and media pages.

It’s wonderful to watch low-level online exchanges build up over time and feed positive face-to-face interaction. FPF postings come from nearby neighbors and each is automatically signed with the sender’s full name, street and email address. After dozens of messages about babysitters, car break-ins, furniture for sale, free baby strollers, roofer recommendations, public policy opinions and more, people begin to get to know their actual neighbors’ virtual personalities, interests, opinions, etc. When they do meet face-to-face, the foundation has been laid for a neighborly exchange.

Kevin Harris reports on three new publications that “contribute significantly to the arguments around neighbourliness, informality, and informal social control.” From the introduction of Respect in the Neighbourhood:

The challenge is to replenish society’s depleted stock of skills in engaging and recognising the legitimate interests of others… to hone our readiness to show consideration to others, whether we know them or not. It’s not that we don’t do this: it’s just that we tend to avoid doing it with those with whom we have little in common. It’s as if – conditioned to the taciturnity of the supermarket checkout rather than the inevitable greetings of the corner shop – we have abandoned the practice of conducting trivial interactions, because they don’t matter to us. But they do matter, and we need somehow to rediscover the vernacular of mundane encounters.

Success and Scale for Local Online Services

Posted on Monday, November 20, 2006 by • No comments yet

Recently, Peter Krasilovsky noted in The Local Onliner that Backfence.com is finding success with it’s “hyper-local” online newspapers (content supplied by local volunteers). Backfence attracted a $3M investment over the last year and now is operating in 13 communities. Further…

Usage-wise, more than 10 percent of local residents in the site’s communities are logging on, and one percent are posting. “We don’t have as many posts as we’d like to have,” but the site has made real inroads in its communities, she says.

It’s a bit apples-to-oranges, but Front Porch Forum had 10% of Burlington, VT households on board within two months of launching… and for a tiny fraction of the investment. Our most successful neighborhoods have 80% of the households registered.

Also, on the issue of scale, The Local Onliner reports about Backfence…

One [lesson learned] is that a hyper-local site had better be scoped along hyper-local lines. “Arlington hasn’t done as well as Bethesda because it is a bigger area,” notes DeFife. “Arlington is actually (four) communities – Clarendon, Ballston, and North and South Arlington. It shows us what (is likely to) happen when we go into counties,” and that it important to keep the hyper-local focus.

If that’s “hyper-local” then I’m not sure how to describe Front Porch Forum’s target scale… micro-local?

Regardless, I’m fascinated to see the variety of approaches. Different strategies will work in different places.

Looking for Good Links

Posted on Sunday, November 19, 2006 by • 3 comments

I just set up the links in the margins here.  It’s interesting to see other online efforts attempting to support community within neighborhoods.  Each has it’s own approach.  Of course, I’m biased and favor the strategy used by Front Porch Forum.  I’d love to participate on a panel with representatives of:

Who else?

Please share links to other services focused on local online community-building.  Also, I’m interested in social capital, social cohesion, civic engagement, etc.  Any good sites to recommend?

Neighborhood Scale

Posted on Thursday, November 16, 2006 by • 1 comment

Kevin Harris found an interesting item:

Here’s another take on the scale of neighbourhood, developed for work on children’s play:

‘Doorstep’ – 60m straight line distance from home (100m walking)
‘Neighbourhood’ – 260m straight line distance from home (400m walking)
‘Local’ – 600m straight line distance from home (1km walking)

This comes from a presentation given by Issy Cole-Hamilton of Play England, at a recent Neighbourhoods Green seminar.

This deliniation is similar to what we’ve found in our work with Front Porch Forum:

1. Borrow a cup of sugar distance… homes within site. Maybe 20-30 households.
2. Your neighborhood… several blocks around you. Maybe 200-300 households.
3. Your side of town… an area, more than a neighborhood. Maybe 2,000-3,000 households.

Our service is aimed at the second level. We get folks who want us to make it work at the first or third levels… but that’s not what we’re designed for. Too small, and the forum doesn’t acheive a critical mass of users and the conversations dies out. Too large, and the sense of intimacy doesn’t occur.

Front Porch Forum TV Interview

Posted on Wednesday, November 15, 2006 by • No comments yet

Richard Kemp interviewed me about Front Porch Forum on his cable access show, Near and Far, on Channel 17 recently. It will be aired at 6 PM on Nov. 20, 2006. It’s also available online (video or audio podcast). This show is a decent primer on how Front Porch Forum works for anyone interested.

Supporting Neighbors in Need

Posted on Monday, November 13, 2006 by • 1 comment

I don’t have the references here in front of me, but I recall studies that found that people who live in areas with a strong sense of community are healthier than those who don’t. I don’t doubt it. Community is a huge compenent of quality of life. Good community can lower stress; bad experiences with the neighbors can increase stress. It’s hard enough to feel daunted by the people at work, or to experience a little road rage… but feeling unsupported or under attack in your home, your supposed safe haven, day in and day out… that’s tough.

We’re seeing more and more beautiful stories of neighbors helping neighbors through our experience operating Front Porch Forum. First-time parents without nearby family? Word goes out and meals, hand-me-down baby clothes, a changing table and stroller show up. A life-long resident in her 80s struggles to stay in her home… neighbors pitch in cutting grass, raking leaves, shoveling snow.

One of the most moving stories was captured by Cathy Resmer at Seven Days:

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.” (Read the full article.)

One motivator for starting Front Porch Forum was selfish… Valerie and I know that strong community is and will be crucial for our son’s continued well being. Ben is seven and has severe cerebral palsy. We, Ben and the entire family, need broad support from those around us to provide him with the basics of a good life. He has both incredible potential and severe challenges.

Which brings me to today’s movie… truly amazing. Ben and I get out for walks, we love to swim in the lake, and he’s always enjoyed squeezing into our bike trailer behind me… but we’ll never be in this league. Go see the video (or watch it below) and read the story.

YouTube Preview Image

TV Show about Local Online Communities

Posted on Friday, November 10, 2006 by • No comments yet

CCTV Channel 17 in Burlington, VT will broadcast a talk show about how to build local face-to-face community using online tools. Front Porch Forum and FreeCycle are featured. The show, Media Literacy Series – Internet Communities, originally aired on Sep 27, 2006 and will be repeated:

Sun, Nov 12, 2006 at 11:52:00 PM
Mon, Nov 13, 2006 at 4:52:00 AM
Mon, Nov 13, 2006 at 10:52:00 AM
Both the video and podcast are also available on Front Porch Forum’s media page.

Front Porch Forum launches forum for volunteers

Posted on Thursday, November 9, 2006 by • No comments yet

Today Front Porch Forum launched an online forum open only to FPF Neighborhood Volunteers in Chittenden County, Vermont, USA. Volunteers can trade tips for recruiting residents to join their neighborhood forums, as well as share fodder for quality local messages. If you live in the Burlington area, sign up for your forum today, then log onto the website and edit your account page to join the 150+ community organizers who are participating. Cheers!

Front Porch Forum Update

Posted on Thursday, November 2, 2006 by • No comments yet

[Originally published on Front Porch Forum for members in Chittenden Co., Vermont, Oct. 31, 2006]

Happy Halloween! Hundreds of trick-or-treaters combing our neighborhood tonight… beautiful fall weather and a wonderful reminder of how good a vibrant and neighborly community can be. Our mission with Front Porch Forum is to help neighbors connect and foster healthy community… so here’s an update. (By the way, this likely will be the last of such reports as we’re developing a blog for this kind of thing. We aim to keep each neighborhood forum filled with neighborhood items instead of this stuff… so please skip the update below if it’s not for you.)

SUCCESS STORIES
We’ve lost count of the hundreds of successful direct results coming out of the various neighborhood forums around Chittenden County… babysitter finds work, homeowner finds a good roofer, house sold, school meeting announced and attracts record attendance, etc.

Even better, though, are the stories of the second tier benefits where neighbors get to know each other a little better and a few more strands are woven into the web of community.

One forum member reported “the quick and honest responses to my request for an auto mechanic recommendation were astounding.” He went on to say that he looked forward to meeting and getting to know these previously anonymous neighbors.

In a different neighborhood, a group of residents were eager to reestablish a shortcut to their elementary school that recently had been cut off. They used their forum to inform parents and also to find a community partner willing to split the cost of fencing a new safe path around a small industrial site. Being well organized and with some funding already in hand, they were able to work constructively with their school to get the job done in record time. Now more kids are walking and biking to school, instead of being driven around the long way.

Another forum member reported trying to sell her car through both print and online classifieds with no luck. As an afterthought she tried her neighborhood’s forum and 3-4 neighbors called to express interest… people she hadn’t known before who live a block or two away.

See http://frontporchforum.com/testimonials/ for more examples. Each of these small connections adds up!

MEMBERSHIP
At the close of our second full month of operations we have more than 2,000 local households on board, spread across 130 neighborhood forums… wow! A few dozen forums are well on their way with lots of members and messages, while the remaining neighborhoods have just a few early pioneers. If this is your case, take heart… that’s how all of the forums start. Each one needs one or more local champions to spread the word.

Most folks report joining because they heard about it from a neighbor, friend, or work colleague. Forums start to take on a life of their own once 75-100 residents register, so please keep reaching out! (Check out the “Pitch In!” webpage after you log in with your password at http://frontporchforum.com/ for a flyer, etc.)

We’d also like to welcome the 135 households of the Brennan Woods neighborhood (Williston) that joined their forum in one fell swoop this month. Their neighborhood association asked to convert their old email list of neighbors over to Front Porch Forum… voila! Instant forum. Several other neighborhood and condo associations are considering a similar move… write (contact@frontporchforum.com) or call me (802-540-0069) to explore this route for your area… much more effective than other options.

By the way, forums are catching on in some rural areas too, including parts of Westford, Hinesburg, Jericho and other towns.

MEDIA
Everytime Front Porch Forum is mentioned in local newspapers, television, radio, newsletters, email lists, blogs, etc. more people sign up for their neighborhood’s forum. We’re finding that most folks need to hear/read about Front Porch Forum 6-7 times before they actually go online and register. Can you help FPF get in print or on the air? Increasingly, nonprofit, church and employer newsletters are printing a line or two telling their readers about this free community-building service. Some members are writing letters to the editor too. The buzz is building! See the latest (including video) at:
http://frontporchforum.com/about/press.php/

In fact, I’ll be on a Channel 15 panel discussion that is occuring Nov. 2 at 6:30 PM called “Blogging and the Democratization of Media: From the Printing Press to Wikipedia and Beyond.” Please come and enjoy the show at VCAM’s studio at 208 Flynn Ave. in the South End of Burlington. Details at:
http://www.vermontcam.org/blog/2006/10/blogging-and-new-media-panel.html/

ADMIN
Reminder… if you abandon your email address (change of job, new internet service provider, etc.), you need to update your Front Porch Forum account. Otherwise, we’ll lose contact with you and you will NO LONGER receive your neighborhood’s forum. To update your account with us, log on to http://frontporchforum.com/ with your password and click Account. If you ever do lose touch with us, please send me at note and we’ll work to get things sorted out.

MOST IMPORTANT (for baseball fans)
As a long-suffering Detroit Tigers fan (some old family history), please keep me and our young children in your thoughts. They really were the best team in baseball for the first 3/4s of the season, despite their performance in the World Series. Buckner just made one mistake for everyone to lament… I lost count of the Tigers’ errors. Oh well… next year! (Or will G. Steinbrenner gobble up our young stars?)

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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