Remember when . . .

My neighbor Jennifer is one of the nicest people I've ever met. She is what I would call the neighborhood mom: someone who nurtures and supports all the kids in the neighborhood. She will do anything and everything for anyone in need of assistance. Running late and can't pick your child up from school, Jennifer will do it. Need to work late unexpectedly, no problem. Your child forgot to bring an apple to school for an assignment. No problem. Jennifer sent in extra with her children because she knew someone would forget.

Truthfully, many of us may think Jennifer is nuts or a bit too much. After all, most people nowadays would say this isn't their issue, problem or responsibility. But what makes Jennifer different from most people, is she truly cares about children, especially those who inhabit the community in which her children live.

When I think about her commitment to kids, I often think about the stories my mom would tell me about what things were like when she was growing up and how you knew your neighbors. How your neighbors looked out for you and how your neighbors treated other people's kids like they treated their own. People didn't go hungry or face life's trials alone.

Growing up, these stories never really garnered much traction with me because they sounded so much like the past, and like any child, I wasn't concerned about the past. I also thought my mom was complaining because she didn't have "nice" neighbors anymore. Honestly, whenever I heard the start of those three magical words: "I remember when," I simply tuned out. But, as a mom, I realize now those stories weren't just about neighbors but about communities, unity and being your brother's keeper.

Truthfully, I feel badly for our children today because many of them are growing up in neighborhoods rather than communities. Neighborhoods are a geographic location where people live whereas communities are made up of a group of people united or bound by a shared sense of purpose or values.

Imagine just for a moment what it would be like if our children grew up in communities where people invested in their success. I suspect we would see a huge increase in the graduation rate, a significant decrease in crime and those children in single family households would have a plethora of parents looking out for them. I think we could lessen the impact of a lot of societal ills if we moved from neighborhoods to raise our children in communities. So while we may think someone like Jennifer is a bit nutty, we certainly could use more Jennifers because they are our best hope to rebuilding our communities.

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