Celebrating the 4th of July and our nation's 250th is about cherishing what’s important to us – our people, our freedom, and our country, and when we get together with our neighbors, we see that despite having voted differently, our values are more alike than they are different.

Celebrating the 4th of July and our nation's 250th is about cherishing what’s important to us – our people, our freedom, and our country, and when we get together with our neighbors, we see that despite having voted differently, our values are more alike than they are different.

Our nation’s 250th is an opportunity for all of us to reignite our neighborly interdependence, as that’s what allowed us to create the United States of America!

So many of us have enjoyed and been inspired by the camaraderie and oneness we are feeling thanks to the World Cup. A friend said it felt like “global neighborliness.” That good feeling is hard to quantify or measure, but it is what is meaningful and memorable in life. The fabulous news is that this feeling of hope and joy doesn’t need to be limited to a one-off special event, but can easily be experienced right where you live, as a more permanent state of being and living.

This week is Loneliness Awareness Week and it’s time to talk about loneliness – what it is/isn’t, the unhelpful and baseless stigma that it holds, and, of course, what we can do about it.

We are only just beginning to realize that human connection needs to be a priority in our daily lives. Our next step, right alongside that, is to understand play as a priority, not just as an opportunity for connection, but as critical to the well-being of children, teens, and adults.

Today marks just one month until America’s 250th birthday!

Our resiliency, as humans, rests on our social connections. Our ability to cope and navigate adversity and dark times depends heavily on our relationships and community support. We’ve lost so much of that, and it’s time to bring it back.

I’ve heard from so many of you that you absolutely love the idea of getting together with your neighbors, but you haven’t organized a block party (micro-local neighborhood gathering) yet. It’s important to get curious about what’s getting in the way of you hosting one, so you can know you’re not alone in what’s holding you back, but that these are hurdles that you can absolutely overcome.

Research shows that children’s well-being and resilience rest firmly on the primary caregivers' well-being and resilience. If the adults in their lives aren’t okay, kids can't be okay. Where are we adults finding joy, belonging, and connection?

In honor of America’s 250th birthday, Block Party USA is launching American Summer — a nationwide call to revive the forgotten tradition of neighborhood block parties, from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend, with a special focus on July 3rd, 4th, and America’s Potluck on July 5th.

Despite the name, Block Party USA is not just about block parties. Our focus is micro-local neighborhood gatherings (you can see how that would be a little too wordy for a website name 😉). These neighborhood gatherings take all different forms.

Many people don’t realize that eating disorders are the second most deadly mental illnesses, only after opioid addiction.

Everything changes when we give attention to that which we want to see more of. We grow it in our minds and hearts, become connected to it, and it strengthens us, our families, our neighborhoods, and our nation.

One of my absolute favorite, beautiful things is watching adults' eyes light up after I've told them about the mission of Block Party USA. Joyful memories are suddenly unlocked, their eyes sparkle, their faces soften, and with a big smile, they begin to tell me about the block parties of their childhood. It's powerful.

Like most of you, I am well aware of the impact of phones disrupting my attention and connection, and the ease at which I get “sucked in.” So I immediately loved the idea of OFF February, an inaugural global campaign to eliminate the distraction and temptation of social media apps on our phones for the 28 days of February, but my body had an entirely different reaction.

The last 15 months of my life have been way too full of challenges and loss. When I bewilderedly asked my therapist if this was “normal,” her humorous reply, “This is not where you want to be on the bell curve of life,” was deeply validating.

This year, 2026, and the 250th anniversary of America, has me full of hope. As I reflect on what made our independence possible in the first place, I keep coming back to this: our interdependence on one another. We did not get here alone, and we will not move forward alone.

In today’s newsletter, I’m talking about college kids coming home, tips for having the holiday you want, and talking to strangers. Feel free to skip to the sections that you're most interested in.

This summer, the World Health Organization Commission on Social Connection released a landmark report that outlined the three key pillars of being a healthy human, including physical, mental, and social health.