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What I Learned From Building a Neighborhood Out of Jenga Blocks

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  I have spent a surprising amount of time lately thinking about Jenga blocks. Not because I have suddenly become competitive at family game night, but because I have been developing an educational activity called Social Capital Jenga: Building, Breaking, and Restoring Neighborhoods . And to be honest, because I had 108 blocks to paint (both ends in assorted colors). The idea is simple. A Jenga tower represents a neighborhood. The individual blocks represent things that contribute to community strength—trust, economic development, neighborhood safety, the environment and personal health. Other blocks represent pressures on a community, including individualism, greed, mobility and scarcity. Then there are cards describing things that happen in real neighborhoods. Depending on what happens, players may remove a block, add a stress block, return a block or leave the tower unchanged. Eventually, of course, the neighborhood falls. That is where the lesson begins. Communities Rarely Coll...
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Front Porch Living in Anytown USA With Kramer

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  One of my favorite Seinfeld episodes contains an unexpectedly good lesson about neighboring. In Season 9, Episode 3, “The Serenity Now, ” Kramer gets an old screen door from George’s parents and decides to install it outside his apartment. Of course, Kramer cannot simply put up a screen door. He transforms the hallway into his vision of small-town America. There are lawn chairs. Flowers. Wind chimes. An American flag. Even a barbecue grill. Kramer calls it “Anytown, U.S.A.”  Suddenly, an anonymous New York apartment hallway has become a front porch. And Kramer loves it. He waters his flowers, talks about mulching the azaleas, plans a barbecue and greets Jerry with a cheerful, “Hello, neighbor.”  For someone who spends a lot of time thinking about neighboring and the importance of front porches, I find the whole thing hilarious. But then Kramer discovers something important. You cannot have the benefits of neighborhood life without also having neighbors. The Front Porch...
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MU Extension is the Engine Behind Missouri Good Neighbor Week

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I want to ask you to imagine something with me.  What if Missouri Good Neighbor Week became much more than a week on the calendar? What if MU Extension became the spark that helped create a statewide movement of people intentionally connecting with the neighbors who live right around them? Think about the network we already have. MU Extension has approximately 300 employees across Missouri. We also have 114 county Extension councils. If we conservatively imagine an average of 15 council members per county, that represents another 1,710 community leaders. Add the 114 county office secretaries, and we have a potential network of approximately 2,124 people connected directly to MU Extension. Now imagine that every one of those people simply reached out to eight neighbors during Missouri Good Neighbor Week. That’s 16,992 individual acts of neighboring . Sixteen thousand nine hundred ninety-two opportunities to introduce ourselves to someone next door. To check on an older...
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The Art of the Invitation: Five Simple Ways to Turn an Ask Into Connection

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  We talk a lot about the importance of gathering with other people. We encourage neighbors to share meals, meet for coffee, attend community events, take walks, or simply spend more time together. But every gathering has to begin somewhere. Usually, it begins with an invitation. And that invitation can be harder than it sounds. We hesitate because we don't want to impose. We worry the other person might say no. We convince ourselves they are probably busy. Sometimes we settle for a vague, "We should get together sometime," which sounds friendly but rarely results in anything actually happening. There is an art to a good invitation, but it isn't complicated. In fact, some of the best invitations have five simple characteristics. 1. Invite a Specific Person Good invitations are personal. Instead of sending a broad message and hoping someone responds, think of one particular person. A neighbor. A coworker. Someone you met recently. Someone you've been meaning to get...
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Come See the Missouri Good Neighbor Week Table at Celebrate Springfield!

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Missouri Good Neighbor Week is coming to Celebrate Springfield , and I hope you’ll stop by our booth! The 5th Annual Celebrate Springfield is a free community event designed to bring neighbors together while showcasing the people and organizations that make Springfield a great place to call home. There will be live music, local organizations, food trucks, activities and plenty of opportunities to connect with others. And the timing couldn’t be better: Celebrate Springfield falls on the final day of Missouri Good Neighbor Week! 📅 Sunday, October 4, 2026 ⏰ 1:00–4:00 p.m. 📍 Route 66 Stadium Front Plaza 🎟️ FREE admission 🚗 FREE parking At the Missouri Good Neighbor Week booth , we’ll be talking about simple ways each of us can become a more engaged neighbor and help build stronger neighborhoods throughout Springfield and Missouri. Stop by, take our 60-second “How Neighborly Are You?” challenge , make a neighboring commitment, and learn how small actions can create stronger con...
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What Makes a Successful Neighborhood Gathering? Connections, Not Entertainment

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  When people plan a neighborhood gathering, it is easy to focus on the wrong things. What food should we serve? Should we have games for the kids? Do we need music? How many tables and chairs? Should there be a theme? What if only a few people show up? Those questions aren't unimportant. But they aren't what determines whether a neighborhood gathering is successful. The goal isn't entertainment. The goal is connection. One of my favorite examples happened in my own driveway. My wife and I periodically invite our neighbors to simple driveway gatherings. Nothing elaborate—coffee and donuts, homemade ice cream, or some other simple excuse to put a few chairs in the driveway and invite people over. We aren't trying to impress anyone. We aren't trying to create an event that people will talk about for weeks. We are simply creating a reason for neighbors to come outside, meet one another and have conversations that might not otherwise happen. At one of our gatherings, ab...
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Neighboring 101: Building Connection One Story at a Time

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  What if one of the best tools for building stronger neighborhoods isn't a big event, a new program or even a community meeting? What if it is a good story? That idea will be at the heart of the next Neighboring 101 session on Thursday, September 24, 2026, at 12 noon Central , when we welcome Dawn Arrington for Session 88 of our ongoing conversation about the art and skill of neighboring. Dawn understands that stories do more than entertain us. They help us see ourselves, understand others and discover what we have in common. In 2018, she founded Comics at the Corner , a literacy nonprofit that uses culturally relevant comic books to promote reading in traditionally underinvested communities. Through pop-up book fairs, reading nooks in local businesses and other creative approaches, Dawn uses storytelling to create opportunities for connection while helping young people discover the joy of reading. Her work is rooted in a simple but powerful idea: people deserve to see themselve...
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Wanted: Good Neighbor Ambassadors in Every Missouri County, Applications Open Now

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Missouri Good Neighbor Week is looking for people across the state who believe stronger communities begin with stronger relationships between neighbors. The new Missouri Good Neighbor Week Ambassador Network gives individuals an opportunity to promote neighboring in their communities, report acts of neighboring throughout the year and help encourage others to get involved. “We are looking for ordinary Missourians who believe knowing and helping their neighbors still matters,” said David Burton, University of Missouri Extension community development specialist and founder of Missouri Good Neighbor Week. “You don't need a title, you don't need to lead an organization, and you don't need to plan a major event. You simply need a desire to connect with the people around you and encourage others to do the same.” Missouri Good Neighbor Week is celebrated Sept. 28-Oct. 4 each year, but Burton says the Ambassador Network reflects an important evolution of the statewide effort...
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Good Neighbor Week 2026: Communities Across America Are Turning Neighboring Into a Movement

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From Orlando to Omaha, Connecticut to San Francisco—and even smaller communities such as Bryant, Arkansas—Good Neighbor Week is becoming a way to turn a simple idea into meaningful community action. September 28 is National Good Neighbor Day, but in 2026, communities around the country are taking the idea beyond a single day. The growing movement encourages residents to meet the people who live around them, volunteer together, celebrate local community leaders, and create opportunities for people to feel connected and included. The National Good Neighbor Day movement encourages communities to make a plan, meet their neighbors and turn one day of connection into something that lasts throughout the year.  Here is what is being planned (or is emerging) for five communities and regions in 2026. Orlando, Florida: A First-Ever Good Neighbor Week Orlando is preparing for its first-ever Orlando Good Neighbor Week , scheduled for September 28 through October 4, 2026 . The effort ...
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