New neighborhood leaders rise on Chicago's West Side
NVP3 participant, Nate Tubbs, lives in the Island Neighborhood on Chicago's West Side, a mostly black and brown community recovering from decades of disinvestment, white flight, and racial violence.
As Nate stepped down from his role as Civic Association President, he encouraged his neighbors to step up and fill it. They're now leading three projects on their own: turning an unused lot into a community space and nature play garden held in the neighborhood's community land trust, building a community fridge, rebuilding the elementary school playground, and running a rapid response team that supports neighbors in times of crisis.
By celebrating his neighbors and trusting them with real responsibility, Nate showed them they were leaders too. Nate took the program as a participant and now serves on NVP's board.
Nate Tubbs
Chicago, IL, USA
NVP3 Participant + NVP Board Member
"One of my immediate neighbors just had her baby very very early and she’s in the NICU in Denver.
Our neighbors sprang into action with taking care of their cat, cleaning the house, Amazon returns, and a meal train.
I think this illustrates perfectly how important this work is. They have us so they can be present with their baby during this really scary time."
Lindsay Pasalic
Lafayette, CO, USA
NVP7 Participant
"It felt like our neighborhood got smaller and bigger at the same time. The neighborhood feels more tight-knit and warm.
NVP helped me feel more connected to those who literally live down the street from me. I'm grateful for the accountability and encouragement to make my neighborhood the kind of place I want to live in."
Pajnucci Vue
San Francisco, CA, USA
NVP5 Participant
"Whether you are worried about the future or just want to have a good time with your neighbours, I highly recommend this course.
Strong communities are resilient, but most of all they give us belonging and make us feel more at home in our neighbourhood.”
Martina Hoeppner
Karrinyup, WA, Australia
NVP3 Participant
"NVP has been one of my best practical learning experiences so far.
I felt understood, supported, and well-equipped with many tools and skills to act confidently. As a result of the course, I have met most of my neighbors and now feel that I belong and am safe here."
Maria Gorina
Boulder, CO, USA
NVP6 Participant
Sarah joined NVP's fourth cohort in Fall 2025 wanting to bring more connection and care to her street. Her first event in our program was a gathering called Soup Helps: rather than a potluck, Sarah would make three big batches of soup for her neighbors, who would bring themselves and a mug.
The week of the gathering, she arrived at our NVP session with a dilemma: she could no longer afford the ingredients to make and share soup while also providing food for her children that week. In a beautiful moment of care, another NVP participant spoke up: her mother lived close to Sarah and had a garden. She connected the two, and Sarah came home with a huge bounty of vegetables. Soup Helps went on.
That session, the group ended up in a long conversation about independence versus interdependence.
Sarah realized she didn't have to hold everything herself. There were people ready to support her so she could continue supporting others, and that is exactly the fabric NVP exists to build.
Here's what Sarah has to say: “This program will help inspire you to move out of any overwhelm or freeze you may be feeling and help you warmly and joyfully move into a sustainable way of being in community with those in your neighborhood!”
Sarah Auna
Minneapolis, MN, USA
NVP4 Participant
"So many wins in my neighborhood right now!
We have plans to share hand-me-down toddler clothes in the works.
[Some neighbors] were emotionally vulnerable with me and it made me feel closer to them and trusted.
A neighbor who was supposed to play music at the event was in a car accident the night before. Thankfully she’s okay but this lead to some personal back and forth check-in texts which would have never happened before NVP efforts started.”
Caitlin Guerrie
Old Town in Lafayette, CO, USA
NVP6 Participant
"I loved the inspiration from the case studies & other people in the NVP Network, the accountability from the weekly calls, and the encouragement that you are the right person to do it!"
Alex Zhu
Baltimore, MD, USA
NVP3 Participant
"NVP was an ideal container of education, collaboration, and support to grow in my neighborhood. I confronted my fears and insecurities, explored best practices for collective care and fun, and made so many connections along the way.
The guidance and accountability were exactly what I needed to show up in my neighborhood as myself and dream for what is possible when we share space!"
Emma Weinstein (they/them)
Chicago, IL, USA
NVP6 Participant
When Bianca joined NVP, she had a clear "why": to help her street in Queens feel more like the vibrant, connected Bronx neighborhood she grew up in, so her daughter could know that same sense of belonging.
For her first event, she planned a street cleanup, but a number of neighbors protested. So we went back to the drawing board together and reframed it as a "Winter Holiday Street Decorating & Cleanup."
The response was much warmer. Bianca and her neighbors decorated their telephone poles and cleared away trash and leaves side by side. By the end of the day, people felt more connected, having beautified their shared home together.
Bianca Lambert
Queens, NY, USA
NVP2 Participant
Suzy Gordon
Boulder, CO, USA
NVP5 Participant
A village is mobilized in Brzeźnica, Poland
After years of city life, Marta (a participant in NVP2) moved back to her home village of Brzeźnica — home to just 500 people. She took NVP hoping to see neighbors of all generations know and support one another.
She started by hosting weekly yoga sessions, bringing home-baked goods to class, and inviting her students to garden potluck dinners. Real friendships formed: neighbors went on Sunday walks together, shared garden produce, and checked on each other during hard times.
Next, she started a WhatsApp group for the village. Villagers joined in droves, using it for everything from event announcements to coordinating water deliveries during a supply crisis.
As she got to know villagers' skills, she encouraged them to lead their own projects.
When the beloved village library faced closure, neighbors organized a lobbying campaign with the mayor, and won.
As she put it: "Working alongside existing organizations, the fire brigade, football club, and village council, amplified our impact exponentially."
Marta Klimowicz
Brzeźnica, Poland
NVP2 Participant
"NVP is a beacon of light in a world where it would be easy to forget that the people you live right next to are living, breathing wonders you haven't met yet.
This program has changed my life in many positive ways and I am very grateful for having had the chance to be a part of it.
I loved seeing my neighbours meeting each other and getting to contribute to something that made everyone so happy.
The other day, my one elderly neighbour ordered a bunch of fresh corn and did a corn boil for everyone, another made homemade apple fritters that everyone was gushing over.
There were 1yr olds and 92yr olds and everyone in between. It was so wonderful."
Bronwen LeGuerrier
Vancouver Island, Canada
NVP6 Participant
Neighbors across the political spectrum build wildfire resilience in Bishop, CA
Robert is a retired dad in Bishop, California, a politically divided town of 3,800 people near the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where his own street is lined with Trump signs and "In this house, love means love" signs. He joined NVP hoping to foster more connection and resilience on his street. His first experiment was a potluck. Nobody showed up.
So he asked himself: what does everyone on his street have in common? Wildfire risk. Every house on the block was vulnerable. He went door to door inviting neighbors to a brush cleanup day, and a few weeks later they hauled four tons of brush into a trailer together, clearing a protective perimeter around their homes.
His politically divided neighbors saw that their differences didn't stop them from doing something useful together. When Robert sent the next potluck invitation, they came.
Robert Atlee
Bishop, CA, USA
NVP3 Participant
Samantha Flores Guerrero
Baltimore, MD, USA
NVP5 Participant
“Highly recommend this course for anyone interested in fostering community in their neighborhood.
The facilitators offer a safe, supportive place for growth. It might seem scary at first, but it's so worth it, and you'll have the most wonderful people to help keep you accountable.”
Kortney F.
Burke, VA, USA
NVP6 Participant
"If you are looking to feel more connected to your neighborhood community, the fabulous staff of NVP will provide you with the tools, support, and confidence to make a difference.
It is a real treat to go from shy "hi"s to true connection and knowing what's going on for and with neighbor friends.
My sense of home is so much stronger now."
Shelby Pawlina
Boulder, CO, USA
NVP6 Participant
“Despite what we might think from social media, you don’t have to move to find community. There’s not some perfect place where you’ll know everyone by names.
You can build it where you are, in your very own neighborhood, now.”
Lane Seppala
Boulder, CO, USA
NVP5 Participant
"I'd been wishing for a deeper sense of community in my neighborhood, but as an introvert, I just figured someone else would have to do that work.
NVP gave me the courage to become the person I wished for: someone to bring us together, make us appreciate our neighborhood, and remind us that we care about each other.
I just wrapped up participation in their six-month cohort of training, planning, and encouragement, and can tell you that the experience has fundamentally changed me, my neighbors, and our connections with each other.”
Jenny Slade
Boulder, CO, USA
NVP6 Participant
“I had a neighbor tell me: 'it's amazing what the energy of one person can do.' It's true.
If you feel like you have a spark of energy to bring into this program, it will be mirrored back and amplified ten fold.”
Ian Leahy
Boulder, CO, USA
NVP4 Participant
“When I started the program, I thought I might meet a few more neighbors on my block. With the encouragement of the facilitators and my cohort, I expanded my ambitions and have hosted two successful events and have more in the pipeline.
Neighbors keep telling me how grateful they are, and that they're making new friends!”
Maria Shanle
Richmond, CA, USA
NVP5 Participant
What if your story was up here too?
What beauty is possible where you live? What vision do you hold for your home?
We would love the chance to support you bringing about a more caring and resilient culture where you live.
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