Leadership : article
Honorees were selected from 78 nominations submitted as part of Missouri Good Neighbor Week 2026, celebrated Sept. 28-Oct. 4.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Twenty Missouri residents have been honored as the state’s Most Engaged Neighbors for 2025. These awards highlight everyday Missourians whose commitment to their neighborhoods strengthens community bonds and creates belonging.
Missourians reported 84,398 acts of neighboring during 2026, shattering the statewide goal of 50,000 and more than doubling the number reported during Missouri Good Neighbor Week in 2025.
In his seventh grade history class, Noah Temple learned how children in other countries often lack access to quality education, a privilege he enjoyed every day. That led him to launch Junior Java, a business that blends entrepreneurship and purpose.
ST. LOUIS, Mo. – A few years ago, Claire Rippel came across the term “civic muscle,” referring to a community’s capacity to take action to address shared goals and challenges.
In Excelsior Springs, a simple idea — neighbors getting to know one another — is reshaping a city. With support from University of Missouri Extension’s Engaged Neighbor Program, residents launched block parties, volunteer efforts and business collaborations that are building trust, boosting civic…
A total of 94 Missourians registered to be Ambassadors in 2026. Three Ambassadors illustrate the range of ways people put neighboring into practice: Emma Alexander, Sabra Kovar and Carla L. Hudson.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo.
University of Missouri Extension and partners were recognized by the City of Kansas City for leadership in restoration efforts in Kessler Park’s North Terrace Lake.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Three Missouri neighborhoods where residents have turned everyday kindness, connection and cooperation into a way of life have been selected as the Missouri’s Most Neighborly Neighborhoods as part of Missouri Good Neighbor Week 2026.
Wilson Majee, a Mizzou health sciences professor, collaborates to adapt the Neighborhood Leadership Academy for South African community leaders.
With HBO’s new six-part documentary series “Neighbors” debuting Feb. 13, a nationally recognized University of Missouri Extension specialist and neighboring enthusiast is available to provide interviews and commentary for reporters and broadcasters as part of a larger discussion about what it means…
A new fellowship program in St. Louis empowers leaders to co-create community-driven solutions, focusing on economic mobility and disaster recovery.
Voices from across America reflect on everyday neighborly acts—from greetings and gatherings to caring and uniting communities.
Michael Brittian and Ed Goeke returned to Springfield from the 50th annual conference of Neighborhoods USA (NUSA) in Jacksonville, Fla., May 20-23, with the Best Neighborhood Program award in the Social Revitalization category. This year’s conference had 525 registered attendees from 36 states and…
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Six Missouri businesses have been selected to receive the 2026 Missouri Good Neighbor Week Most Neighborly Business Award, which recognizes businesses that go beyond transactions to build trust, uplift people and strengthen their communities.
For Missouri Good Neighbor Week, the Warren County Extension Council decided to create senior care bags filled with everyday essentials, including items such as toilet paper and dish soap, along with food items for seniors who may be experiencing food insecurity.