In honor of National Good Neighbor Day on Monday, September 28th, and the US Chamber of Connection’s Welcome Week, starting September 26th, let’s build neighborhood connections all across America through invitations.

Today is World Suicide Prevention Day, and it may seem odd to be talking about saying no to signing your kid up for organized youth sports – but there IS a connection.

I’ve been thinking a lot about space – not the planets or stars – but space in my mind, space in my day, space from technology, space in my calendar, space to play, and to connect. Protected space.

The more people I talk with about Block Party USA’s American Summer campaign, the more I realize that whilst we don’t need to extend Summer (it’s time to get those kids back into a routine!) we should definitely extend American Summer!

No matter how old my kids are, I will always think of the back-to-school season as a new start, a new year, with new routines and thoughts about what I would like the year ahead to look like. For me, I want less stress. I want sanity. Talking with others, I know I’m not alone.

I am super excited to announce that my South by Southwest (SXSW) proposal, titled “How a Block Party Can Change Your World,” is up and ready for a community vote! 30% of the selection weight for panels comes from community votes. That’s YOU!

I want to highlight a beautiful story of a four-year-old boy who not only changed his own life, but the lives of many of his elderly neighbors, and the entire social fabric of his neighborhood.

I’ve learned and seen over and over that building that network of support is critical for a resilient family—impacting both the resilience of the kids and the parents!

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.