One of our goals when we moved to Rochester was <a href=”http://rocville.com/re-energizing-rocville/” target=new>to be part of a community</a>. Sometimes you are lucky enough to move into a tight community where the people have street parties, watch out for each other’s kids and know their neighbors. In America today, those tight-knit communities are a rare commodity. For most of us, that means that if we want to have a strong community, we need to put the effort into building relationships with neighbors, businesses and law enforcement officials in our own neighborhoods.

And it all begins with getting to know your neighbors. It doesn’t matter if you live in the city, country or suburbs, get to know your neighbors. My grandparents were farmers and the nearest neighbor was a mile away. Yet, they knew all their neighbors. They brought dinner to one another when a baby was born or someone was ill. They dropped by on Sunday afternoons for cookies and tea. They knew when a neighbor was in trouble or when someone got married. The geographic distance between neighbors didn’t deter them from building a strong community. Yet many of us don’t know a thing about our neighbors whose front doors we can see from our windows.

The simple first step is to introduce yourself. I am super embarrassed that I still don’t know some of my neighbors at the end of our street, which actually stopped me from introducing myself. So, my party line is now just that. “I’m embarrassed that we’ve lived here for a year and a half and I have yet to introduce myself.” Most have responded with similar embarrassment that they had yet to reach out to us, given that they’ve lived here for years. Someone has to open the door. Be the one to do it.