Category Archives: Social Media
Saying “Thank You” says a Lot
We’ve seen a run of “thank you neighbor” messages in various forums. Not only is that a lovely gesture to counter a good deed, but it spreads the good will even farther. I’ve had several Front Porch Forum members (not involved with the good deeds in question) tell me that reading these thank you notes encourages them to act the
Good Samaritan role themselves. Examples:
I want to thank all those who have been so markedly supportive to my kids and me. My house stood burning and the kids and I were surrounded by you my neighbors who enveloped us with love and humor and so so much kindness. When I arrived on the scene my knees were giving out and I could barely stand… Teenagers on the street came to hug me. Parents would show up with such good intentions and humor that calm and possibly a half a smile showed on my face. Hats and gloves and blankets and leggings were placed on my person. I could regroup. The generous gift cards have saved my butt on a couple of levels but more importantly I was able to get the kids some new things at Old Navy which served quite well in the shopping therapy arena. Again a sincere thank you to everyone who has so generously reached out to all of us. -M.K., Five Sisters Neighborhood Forum
And the Valentine’s Day blizzard generated lots of this. First, a senior citizen received help from a neighbor, K.R., when the snow blocked even her attempts to let her dogs outside. She was grateful and posted a thank you and request that the K.R. stop by to receive the pay she felt she owed her. K.R.’s response:
I’m glad to have helped out shoveling your deck and side way. I’m pleased the dogs can go out and get some fresh air. No need to pay. I was happy to do it for you. What are neighbors for? -K.R., The Orchards Neighborhood Forum
Other examples:
I just wanted to send out a thank you to everyone who has been helping with this crazy amount of snow we have. Yesterday when I was attempting to unbury my car from a huge snow drift on the side of College St., numerous people stopped by to help or just to encourage. We’ve also watched from our windows as people rallied together to push cars up the hill or out of stuck driveways. Our neighborhood is coming together during this blizzard and it is wonderful to see 🙂 B.G., Buell Neighborhood Forum
The recent calls for help during and after the snowstorm reminded me of how much we count on our community to come together during times of need. I’m a single mom of a four year old. When we were getting buried last week, I resigned myself to shoveling in 5 minutes spans — going back inside to make sure she was still safely occupied with her dolls. So imagine my surprise and gratitude when I returned outside to see that someone had shoveled half my driveway when I wasn’t looking. And imagine my greater surprise and thanks when a couple of other neighbors joined to help me find my car inside a giant drift and finish the whole shoveling job. So amid the calls for assistance on this forum, I wanted to post public thanks for assistance given to my daughter and me… thank you. You are good neighbors. -C.C., The Addition Neighborhood Forum
So, thanks to all the great thank-you note writers!
Forum Members answer Call to Shovel
Dozens of Front Porch Forum members requested help from their neighbors in the wake of the blizzard… most in need of snow removal. Others posted generous offers to help. We also were glad to help spread the word about Operation Snow Shovel… apparently to good effect:
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!
Angie Spong
The Center for Community and Neighborhoods
WCAX covered this story on the evening news too.
Citizen Media Survey
Wow! I just waded through the new study about online citizen journalism by the Knight Citizen News Network at the University of Maryland (thanks to the Local Onliner for the link). They surveyed a gaggled of local news/blog sites and wrote up their findings.
Front Porch Forum is a second cousin to this type of site, but not a sibling. Some comparisons:
Overall there was little accountability built in for content contributors: 73% of all respondents said their sites didn’t require users to register; 69% said a valid e-mail was not even required before posting. Only 40% of 141 respondents said their sites required contributors to use their real names; 60% said their sites allowed either anonymous posts or the use of “screen” names.
Front Porch Forum requires first and last names, street address and email address.
Asked whether their sites edited contributions before they were posted, 40% of 149 replies said content was edited; 48% said it was not and 12% just didn’t know. Half (50% of 131 replies) said offensive or inappropriate content was filtered out before posting. Most respondents (66% of 119 replies) said their sites removed offensive or inappropriate content after it was posted; but 17% of the respondents said such content was not removed, and 17% just didn’t know.
Front Porch Forum does not edit content, but it does screen all postings, add headlines and clean up formatting.
Half the respondents reported that 26 or fewer people overall were contributing content or skills to their enterprise, although site operators say many of those are just occasional contributors.
When we analyzed our flagship neighborhood forum that covers an area of 350 households, we found that about:
-300 households subscribe (after six years)
-200 households have posted at least one message
-100 households have posted at least six messages
For the past five months we’ve been hosting 130 neighborhood forums covering the Burlington, Vermont area. More than 15% of the city’s households have joined already. I’m not sure how many of those people are contributing, but I’d guess that it’s significantly greater than on many of the surveyed sites.
Based on their own definitions of “success,” 73% of our survey respondents pronounced their sites to be successful.
Well, it’s early, but I’ll give Front Porch Forum a thumbs up on the “success” question at this point. It seems most of the sites in the survey focus on success around journalistic goals of informing and engaging the public. Our purpose is to help neighbors connect and foster community within neighborhoods. Local news from our members to their neighbors contributes to that process, but it’s not the end goal.
Does anyone get paid? Of the 78 who replied: 33% said their sites had no paid workers; 33% said only one or two workers got paid.
We’re in the 33%. 😉
Small steps toward Neighborliness
Kevin Harris writes this week:
I’m trying to write a paper about neighbourliness and have been thinking about the reciprocity of acts of neighbouring… research has found that… sometimes one neighbour helps out another without getting much in return, and keeps doing so.
However, the researchers only included… “favours” in their study, and it seems to me that other, intangible forms of interpersonal behaviour which are in some way supportive – for instance a sympathetic chat on the doorstep to provide comfort in the face of bad news, or the sharing of information about local services – are likely to be viewed by neighbours as valid contributions to the same exchange relationship.
Many years ago I recall rushing out of my house shouting when I saw from my window a neighbour’s toddler stepping into the road, as the mother was getting the shopping from her car. For this simple act I was rewarded almost immediately with a bottle of wine from the shopping bag. It was clear that I had to accept it, not least because there was probably a confused swelling wave of guilt as well as gratitude in her expression of thanks. But it was also, of course, a recognition of the non-obligatory, but potentially vital, role of neighbour.
This begins to get at what’s unfolding in some of the areas served by Front Porch Forum‘s more successful neighborhood forums. Some how the accumulation of lots of little items are creating an environment more welcoming of overt “good neighbor” acts, like baking a cake for a neighbor in need of boost. That’s an odd move if you’ve only interacted with the person once or twice, but is more reasonable if you’re both subscribed to the same small and lively neighborhood forum.
North End Armory sparks Access Debate
The City of Burlington picked up the Gosse Ct armory cheap from the National Guard in 2005… but what to do with it? Local media has reported some of the discussion about what to do with the dilapidated building.
More ideas and debate have surfaced this week through Front Porch Forum. One member suggested a fitness center. A neighbor responded that we had plenty of opportunities for fitness. In defense of his original idea, Patrick Standen responded to his neighborhood forum:
With all due respect I think I am a pretty good judge as to what is accessible and not having spent 30 years in a wheelchair, served on federal, state and local access boards and functioned as an ADA consultant–that’s the Americans with Disabilities Act. Sadly, our YMCA does not provide “A fine fitness center… for all abilities” because it is completely wheelchair inaccessible. Having worked closely with the Y, accessibility is one of their top concerns, but their current building cannot accommodate visitors w/mobility impairments–it is an embarrassment to the Y. The only solution will be a new building.
As to the beaches and sidewalks, have you ever tried to access the lake from a wheelchair? Burlington lacks any wheelchair-friendly accommodation to the lake and the well-lit sidewalks may be lit but not very wheelchair friendly during the winter months.
I don’t mean to sermonize, but it is just this insensitive lack of awareness that keeps Vermonters with disabilities as second-class citizens without the same rights and opportunities as the larger population. While Burlington prides itself on being “progressive” and “liberal” it is in the dark ages concerning accessibility and disability rights.
Let’s keep the dialogue going…
As a father of a 1st grader who depends on his wheelchair to get around this city, I can only add… Amen Patrick.
Lost Pet Reunited and Community Benefits
As C.G., a member of the Hinesburg Village Forum put it: “Another forum success story!!” First came:
Lost Cat? Issue No. 30 – Jan. 29
A very hungry orange & white cat is hanging around our house next to the old library. He/she seems healthy and well-cared-for, other than being cold and hungry. Is anyone missing a cat? I think he is sleeping in the big green barn next door.
Followed by this from S.S.:
Lost Cat Question Issue No. 31 – Jan. 30
Tuesday, January 30, 2007 – 7:12 am
Where is the old library? My next door neighbors have an orange and white cat they let out all the time…
And today’s conclusion by C.G.:
Another forum success story!! Issue No. 32 – Jan. 31
“Tiger,” the lost orange cat, was retrieved by his owner this morning!!! He had been missing for an entire month, poor thing.BTW, the old library is now Clover Creek, an invitation and graphic design firm. It is located next to Grateful Dog Grooming, diagonally across from Lantmans.
So, not only was a pet quickly reunited with his family after C.G. took the initiative to post a note to her neighborhood forum, but S.S. learned a bit of local history about the old library… as did the other 60 households subscribed to this forum. Add this episode to many others about cars sold, school events announced, plumbers recommended, etc. and the net effect is… neighbors connecting and fostering community.
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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