Community Spirit: The Book (and How To Be a Part of It)

I came across your page while looking for different ideas of community spirit for a speach class. I've been interested in this subject for a long time and am curious to know what we can do as individuals to bring back some of the "community" that used to exist before skyscrapers and big business. I grew up in the village of Nenana, Alaska. When we (the family) moved from there I realized then that there is something special about the community from which I had come. It was like a real life episode of "Cheers"-everybody knew your name. Movies sometimes attempt to depict the small town life where people are there to hold out their hand to those in need and when something big (or small) occurs they are all there to celebrate. They enjoy community BBQ's, town square dances, council meetings (in which citizens actually attend and take part), and they work together to build the community in which they live, each doing their part. In Nenana, the town was practically shut down for the Fourth of July because everyone was downtown hanging out in the parking lot and into the street for local events. There'd be pie eating contests, children digging for change in piles of sawdust, and adults engaged in three-legged races. Best of all? It was for the community...not profit. The events were free to all.
Of course, today were are living in a new world. Small towns are becoming cities, cities are continuing to grow, and the internet has all but replaced real-life interaction with other people. Personally, I think community spirit has been lost. Seems that church organizations and 12-step programs still possess a sence of community. They work together for the betterment of the people, lend a helping hand when needed, and have a genuine interest in what's happening around them within their fellowship. Why can't we have that still? even in big cities? Within every city lies separate communities. Within each of those something of the past could be brought back to build a brighter future. Organizations such as Habitat for Hummanity have the right idea. Now if only we could convey the message to individuals. We could have a much brighter future.

Thanks for all the great suggestions and what community means to you, guys - really appreciate it.

Community: A group of folks that act based on a shared vision of a world they dream of creating for their children.

Are you taking advanced orders for the book?

Thumbs up!

Ah ha! Based off your request: What you’d like to see as the standard for communities worldwide and how they can be merged into one living community as a whole - looking out for each other and offering our helping hands along the way....

Community as a whole where we look out for one another offering helping hands along the way is right on target with a dream I have that I would love to implement someday..

A community database in cities (each city has their own) where people post their needs where someone can volunteer to meet that need. It is the essence of community. Reaching out to others to embrace each person's need and responding in kind with volunteer service to help meet that need. A need could be that someone needs help moving and a volunteer could log-in to the community database to browse needs and find this "help with moving" need. Pair up people with needs to those who want to help. In a way, it takes the "micro-financing" approach via Kiva.org and applies it to everyday real life needs where those who sign in to the "community" can help one another.

Community Spirit:

A group of people who are connected by a common ideal. At www.pifworld.com people come together to stride for a higher cause. I think that is what communitybuilding is about. On our own we cannot reach much, together we can make a difference. We can fight against poverty, AIDS, slavery and lots of other social problems. I'd like to hear your comments about this.

Community spirit is when everyone huddles to hug, while seeing and being part of the nucleus! :~)

While communities traditionally begin by a group of people coming together around a single purpose, the most successful ones are those where members grow to become a part of each others lives. The desire for a wide range of communities has always existed and the tools we now have at our disposal make it easier and easier to find those that share our common interests and connect with other members regardless of physical location. Historically communities were dictated by location more than shared interest, but new technology and rapidly increasing usage have allowed us to reach way beyond our own sphere when seeking those who share our passions.

Community Spirit is based on having the lowest barriers for interaction. In essence, you can talk to that person at anytime, anywhere and they will get back to you asap.

Community is a group based on working towards a common goal and helping each other in any way that they can.

Neither could exist without the other.

Wow, Danny. I don't know if you've hinted or mentioned this book in the past, but this is coming out of left field for me. I first want to offer you congratulations for opting to embark on the publishing route. But I also want to ask you why?

Are you writing a book because it's something you want to do or is it because your people are talking about something that you and your book can help?

I see oodles of quote-unquote online marketing mavens announcing their intent to write books--and I boggle. More to the point, when you consider social media is changing daily, what's to prevent your book to be moot in six months when it goes to print? The community is not about people writing books; the community is about this...this...THIS...this conversation, whether it's on a blog or within a social networking site. The community is in the local rotary club, the kiwanis, the elks. That's community. Books? I don't understand why you're doing it.

Community is the reason many of us get up in the morning. The sense of camaraderie, sharing, and friendship that one feels when one is part of a strong community is unmatched by just about any other type of relationship.

Tools are tools. In the "old" days (15 years ago), communities were built using tools such as the telephone, handwritten correspondence, or with face to face interactions. Communities of old were unshakable and capable of changing lives on a daily basis.

Now, we have tools that provide us access to a worldwide and instantaneous network of like-minded people. The power I, as an individual, now have to listen, learn, share, create and collaborate with people from anywhere, at any moment, is vast and awe-inspiring.

This IS the next big thing. We are living in an era of great change, great challenges and great expectations. It's by virtue of these strong community ties that we are able to meet our planet's most serious issues head on. Community is the great connector, the great equalizer, and quite possibly the thing that will mean our ultimate success in overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds.

Thank you, Danny, for leading the charge - for without great leaders, great communities will never flourish.

Community: a group of people big or small coming from various backgrounds to share a common goal or purpose.

Twitter/Facebook and other social media platforms along with email have been big tools for me to be part of communities but even larger still are the groups I myself belong to such as being a student, or being part of various organizations. Groups that have stronger organizational structures that ensure the involvement of all members tend to be stronger in community building and members tend to have closer connections.

What I would like to see from communities big and small is much more openness and autonomy. A point where there isn't a need to play politics and members aren't fixed into set roles. Where parts of a larger whole can gather together to do good and improve the larger organization. I feel to often we get stuck in hierarchy and bureaucracy and that limits the ideas and motivation of the community to continue moving forward.

The spirit of community in the conversation age is that these online tools (twitter, facebook, etc...) puts us all on the same level, allowing us to bypass the barriers that communities previously faced. Regardless of who you are or where you're from, you are able to connect with other individuals and work together to share and communicate based on a common interest or passion. This contributory mentality creates an environment where by helping other individuals in your community, you're helping the entire community, creating a better world to live in. As the conversation age develops and past barriers are dissolved, the world will continue to get smaller, becoming one great community based on the human passion to connect.

Community:
A spontaneous support network dedicated to encouraging, facilitating and celebrating each members' success. The shared knowledge, connections and experience of the community result in a powerful force that moves everyone closer to their goals. Social media such as Twitter, Facebook and the meet-ups they enable are only the tools that allow community-minded individuals to reach out to a larger geographic network to offer services and wisdom. The desire to connect comes from the heart.

Love the title, Danny. (AND the Arcade Fire pick, btw.)
It's a brave new world, for sure. It's fast and furious and I love it, too.

The two things I hold close as I navigate each day, building community around me.

1. Behave as though you're standing in a real room with real people. Because you are. Don't pop your head in, scream your head off about things and then pop out. Don't stand in the middle doing nothing but repeating what others say. (Cuz that's just weird and awkward.) Remove the monitor in your actions. If you want a real community, behave as though you're in one.

(And this is the part that gets me goosebumby. Playing the song again as I type.)

2. The technology has been blamed for isolating us. For making life TOO fast. TOO busy. And I agree. But guess what? It's now moving us so fast that we don't have time to live such separate, self-contained lives anymore. We NEED each other again. We're pioneers in a very real sense. The commune in community is coming hard and fast because we're all so busy, that we're leaning on each other again. We're each picking up the tool we use best and digging in to build our neighbors' homes. And I've dreamt of living in that kind of world for as long as I can remember.

Ahhhh, the paradox.

So if ya need an editor, Danny Brown, (wink) ya know where to find this neighbor.

All the best to ya.

Community:

A group of like-minded people that share common beliefs and attitudes. But more so, a "place" where we go to have meaningful conversations about topics and ideas we're passionate about. And a "venue" where divergent viewpoints are not only accepted--they're encouraged in order to open up honest, two-way dialogues that will help us grow together.

@arikhanson

Community Spirit:

Being of the mindset that the group you've willingly joined will continue to grow and prosper and that the contributions you make now will pay off someday many times over. These rewards may come in different forms for different people such wealth, knowledge, or pride but it will present itself if the community is worthy of the investments its members put into it.