Building a Sense of Community

Written by: Hailey Peckat | Program Manager at Fitness at SPS Tower | AdvantageHealth Corporation

The pandemic has brought about a range of good and bad thoughts, feelings, and emotions; no matter our differences, I believe we can all agree that we have learned how important it is to feel a part of a community. In her article titled “The importance of community: 7 Key benefits” Dee Marques, a social science graduate, outlines why feeling part of a community has such an impact in our overall wellbeing. Whether it’s feelings of support and safety or a sense of belonging, taking that first (sometimes scary) step to reach out to your neighbors may be just what you both need. A great time to bring your neighbors together is through National Night Out.

National Night Out is a designated time to build relationships and trust between neighbors and law enforcement. On the second Tuesday of August, you will find neighbors across the country coming together to host BBQ’s, carnivals, and block parties, with most including visits from your local law enforcement. If you’re feeling courageous and want to be the organizer of your community block party, follow the directions on natw.org to register your party and receive additional resources; best of all, it’s free!

Participating in National Night Out could be your first step to building personal relationships with those around you and your local law enforcement. You will find that having that sense of community and belonging will spill over into all aspects of wellbeing. You might even find it becomes a fun tradition you look forward to planning with your neighbors!

Resources:

Marquees, D. (2022, July 27). The importance of community: 7 key benefits. Retrieved from happiness.com: https://www.happiness.com/magazine/relationships/the-importance-of-community/

National Night Out. (2022, July 27). Retrieved from https://natw.org/

Since 2001, Minnesota-based AdvantageHealth has been delivering award-winning employee wellbeing programs and fitness center design & management throughout the U.S.