The second annual Missouri Good Neighbor Week, celebrated from Sept. 28 to Oct. 4, was a documented success, said David Burton, a representative of the Green County University of Missouri Extension and organizer of the event.
Organizers had a goal to document 15,000 acts of neighboring. But instead, Missourians reported 19,752 acts of neighboring during the week.
For the second year in a row, Shari McCallister and D&L Florist in Houston, were credited with carrying out the top neighboring acts statewide. McCallister worked with sponsors, volunteers and partners to distribute 5,078 individually wrapped roses on Sept. 28 across Texas County to neighbors and community heroes, Burton shared. This year's effort increased by 2,000 roses by involving partners in other Texas County communities: Licking, Summersville and Cabool.
The sponsors of Missouri Good Neighbor Week — University of Missouri Extension and The Hopeful Neighborhood Project — recognize the most engaged neighbors and the best acts of neighboring during the week to encourage acts of neighboring all year.
According Burton, community development specialist with the MU Extension and creator of Missouri Good Neighbor Week, 10 different reported acts of neighboring were selected as the best examples in Missouri this year. In addition to McCallister, those recognized included the city of Springfield, KY3-TV and the Springfield-Greene County Park Board for organizing block parts; Cooper County Extension Council and 4-H Clubs for organizing a pet supply drive; cucumber grower Wanda McLane in Nixa who gifted over 500 cukes around her community; Susan Peck and MapleGood members in Maplewood for a rock painting party; Pulaski County MU Extension staff and council for organizing a food drive for military families; Jasper County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Thomas Crossley and other deputies who held a movie night to connect with the community; Marilyn Prosser in Springfield who coordinated a potluck celebrating ethnic foods; Darla Noble in Rogersville who hosted a neighborhood cookout and cookie-distribution; and Cathy Baker in Republic, who grew and delivered 25 vases worth of flowers to neighbors with a hand-painted card.
Greene County reportedly led the state with over 6,000 acts of neighboring, followed by St. Louis County in second place, Texas County in third and Boone County in fourth.
“Whether you are an award winner or not, we want to encourage Missourians to keep learning the names of their immediate neighbors, finding ways to use their names, and planning fun neighborhood events to develop positive relationships and increase social capital,” said Burton. “Your personal health and social capital improves, your neighbors have an increased sense of belonging, and your community benefits from more civic engagement.”
Each statewide award winner receives a signed certificate and a prize check by mail as a thanks for their efforts. Several participants this year marked their submission as wishing to remain anonymous and were not considered for the awards.
One goal for 2024, said Burton, is to do more of random prize drawing from among submissions to include all submissions.
Missouri’s governor signed legislation HB1738 on July 1, 2022, establishing Missouri Good Neighbor Week. The week begins on Sept. 28, also National Good Neighbor Day (first created in 1978 by President Jimmy Carter). Being a good neighbor offers tremendous health benefits, reduces crime, reduces loneliness, improves communities, and improves our quality of life.
Missouri Good Neighbor Week was selected as the best neighboring program in the United States for 2023 by Neighborhoods USA.
For more information, contact David Burton, community development specialist with University of Missouri Extension, by phone at 417-881-8909 or by email at burtond@missouri.edu or online at engagedneighbor.com.
Jennifer Prophete can be found at the Hopeful Neighborhood Project, www.hopefulneighborhood.org and reached by email at jennifer.prophete@lhm.org.
