Letter from a Neighbor

photo by alekon pictures

In the neighborhood where I live, on the top of South Street in West Brattleboro, we are in the habit of staying in touch. When isolation set in, we started waving to each other from a distance. And several younger neighbors wrote, offering any kind of help. We are so grateful to have caring friends and neighbors.

But now the crisis has generated some extraordinary initiatives. Recently we were contacted by new neighbors at the bottom of South St., Ra van Dyk and Jane Diefenbach, acting as the

Neighborhood Point Persons (NPPs) for Brattleboro Area Mutual Aid (BAMA). The mission of BAMA, which was started by Erin Maile O'Keefe, Jennifer Jacobs, and Angela Earle Gray, is to "empower neighborhoods to self-organize so they can provide mutual support within and to connect people with larger needs to the resources that can help them." By reaching out through email or text, participants can register their needs and also the ways in which they can help.

Every neighborhood in Brattleboro has an NPP and every household should have been contacted by now, most with a letter delivered to the door. You can follow up with your NPP, using the contact information provided in that letter, or sign up at bamavt.org or on the town website under "Resources for Individuals and Families."

I am so much in awe of Brattleboro's organized response. As soon as it is permitted, I am going to stop by and introduce myself to Ra and Jane. Who would have thought? Having to stay apart these days is bringing us closer together.

Christina Gibbons

West Brattleboro