Celebrate the kindness of some wonderful neighbors on National Good Neighbor Day
Everybody needs good neighbors. Human beings are naturally communal, and the benefits of bonding with families and individuals living nearby can't be overstated. That's why National Good Neighbor Day was created.
Good Neighbor Day was the brainchild of Becky Mattson in the early 1970s when she felt the need to connect with her neighbors in Lakeside, Montana. In 1978, President Jimmy Carter established it as a national day for promoting understanding between people and building stronger communities.
Today, National Good Neighbor Day is celebrated every year on September 28th and is marked by neighbors sharing food and fun to encourage bonding and a sense of community.
Neighborliness can, of course, take many forms. Sometimes, it's just a simple act of caring, as in our story about neighborhood kids teaching a boy how to ride his bike or the family who adopted an older man living in their subdivision as an honorary grandpa.
Other times, being a good neighbor goes way beyond everyday goodwill. Instead, it provides a real lifeline to someone in physical or emotional need.
One such story involved a man offering help to a lonely young boy in his neighborhood who appeared on his doorbell cam, desperately searching for friends of his own age.
Other neighborly stories we've featured include the tale of a couple who've made it their mission to spread kindness in their local area in the wake of a natural disaster, and the man who used time off during the pandemic to start a free lawnmowing service for elderly people and others in need. That initiative has since expanded from his neighborhood into a nationwide charity.
We can all benefit from being part of a community, and that is what National Good Neighbor Day is all about.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Watch classic examples of neighborliness on National Good Neighbor Day
