If you want to know the future health of a community, don’t start with its roads, budget, or business climate. Start with its civic muscle —the strength of its belonging, contribution, leadership, and vitality.  Civic muscle is the social infrastructure that determines whether people trust each other, work together, and feel connected to the place they call home. Thanks to University of Missouri Extension’s new Civic Muscle Index (https://civicmuscleindex.org), Missouri counties can now see where they are strong and where they struggle. The index scores each county from 1 to 100 across four domains: Belonging, Contribution, Leadership, and Vitality.  For Greene County, the reports reveal enormous promise, solid infrastructure, and meaningful gaps worth addressing. This article highlights what the numbers show, the lessons we can learn, the areas needing improvement, and the assets we can leverage to build an even stronger civic foundation. How Greene County Compares Gre...

  A colleague recently asked me whether community development needs “civic therapists.” At first, it sounds like consultant-speak gone too far. But the more I sit with it, the more it feels exactly right. Because many struggling towns aren’t held back by zoning codes, grant formulas, or business attraction strategies. They’re held back by something quieter and much more personal: chronic apathy and low civic self-esteem. Communities behave just like the people who comprise them. When residents carry confidence, places feel vibrant and possible. When residents feel disconnected, discouraged, or invisible, that mood spills into the streetscape. And after decades of disinvestment—whether economic, social, or emotional—many communities have people who simply don’t feel great about where they live. That’s not a technical problem. It’s an emotional one. This is why big, shiny investments often fall flat. A new park, a redevelopment project, or a splashy grant announcement can look impres...

  Founded in May 2025, the new Republic, Missouri Rotary Club—known affectionately as RepMo Rotary —has wasted no time living out Rotary’s mission of “Service Above Self.” In just its first few months, this young club has demonstrated how much can be accomplished when purpose and community pride come together. Through hands-on service, creative fundraising, and a spirit of collaboration, the club’s members are already leaving an imprint on their city—and setting in motion ripple effects that could transform Republic for years to come. Service in Action RepMo Rotary’s first year reads like a highlight reel of meaningful service. Members have jumped into diverse projects that meet real needs while connecting people and organizations across Republic. Feeding Families: Members assembled 4,500 after-school food bags at Convoy of Hope and helped sort six tons of food during the People Helping People Stamp Out Hunger drive. They also helped make 5,500 PB&J sandwiches for the Re...

*Image created by David Burton, author of this blog, by merging Peter Block's photo and the book cover. Peter Block’s book, "Community: The Structure of Belonging" is a compelling and human-centered exploration of how to build resilient, inclusive, and empowering communities. It’s not a technical manual, but rather a philosophical and practical guide to shifting the ways we think about engagement, leadership, and social transformation. Originally published in 2008, the book remains highly relevant today, especially in an age marked by increasing social fragmentation, civic disengagement, and a longing for meaningful connection. Main Themes 1. Shifting the Narrative: From Problems to Possibility One of the foundational themes of the book is the importance of shifting our narrative from one of deficiencies and problems to one of possibility. Block argues that communities often fall into a trap of focusing on what’s broken — poverty, crime, underdevelopment — and in do...

  In 1884, Georges Seurat created a famous painting called "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jette," using tiny dots of color instead of brushstrokes. This technique, called Pointillism, made the painting come alive as the dots blended together from a distance, creating a beautiful image. This idea can be compared to our communities today. Each person is like a single dot, and together we form a larger picture. Just like in Seurat's painting, we all contribute to the overall image of our communities. We may not always realize it, but every action, no matter how small, adds to the bigger picture of our neighborhood, school, or town. Whether it’s helping a neighbor, attending a community event, or even offering a kind word, we are creating our community one “dot” at a time. Each of us has the power to make the world around us brighter, kinder, and more welcoming. However, we are not just connecting the dots; we are also creating them. Every new relationship or po...

  Photo description: SGF Kickball representatives receive their national award from four members of the Neighborhoods USA Board of Directors. Pictured left to right are  Reba Taylor-Hill of Indianapolis, Indiana, Precious McKesson of Omaha, Nebraska; Michael Brittan, Ed Goeke, Keno Wong of Nassau, Bahamas, and Dwight Pridgeon of Little Rock, Arkansas. SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Michael Brittian and Ed Goeke returned to Springfield from the 50th annual conference of Neighborhoods USA (NUSA) in Jacksonville, Florida, May 20-23, 2025, with the coveted Best Neighborhood Program award in the Social Revitalization category. This year's conference had registered 525 attendees from 36 states and featured educational workshops, speakers, tours, networking, and an awards program. The NUSA awards process began with submitting applications in March. Applications were then scored, and those selected as national finalists were alerted and asked to make a 15-minute presentation at the national...

A neighborhood is more than just a group of houses or streets. It’s a place where people live close to each other, share spaces, and often have things in common. A neighborhood can be as small as a block or as large as a few square miles. What makes it special is not the size or shape, but the people and the connections they have with one another. You might live in a neighborhood with sidewalks, streetlights, and playgrounds. Or your neighborhood might be rural, with wide-open spaces and farmland. Some neighborhoods are filled with businesses, schools, and parks. Others are quiet and mostly residential. No matter the layout, a neighborhood is defined by the people who live there and how they interact. So who is a neighbor? At the simplest level, a neighbor is someone who lives near you. It could be the person next door, across the street, or even someone a few houses down. But being a neighbor is about more than just living close by. It’s about how you treat the people around you. A...