GROUPS of locals across the region will celebrate Neighbour Day on Sunday, March 29, with the help of the City of Greater Bendigo.
The council is working with local Neighbourhood Houses to give people the chance to catch up with those who live nearby.
Neighbour Day founder Andrew Heslop said the response to the day around Australia was fantastic.
“It’s great to know many councils and shires have really embraced Neighbour Day by developing official ‘street party kits’ making it easy for residents to apply to temporarily close their street,” he said.
“Since Neighbour Day began many local government bodies in the city and country have made available free barbecues, portable coffee machines, cricket sets and other games to encourage neighbours to get together on the last Sunday in March”.
“These initiatives have turned Neighbour Day into a great celebration of community, ultimately bringing people together simply to say thanks for being a great neighbour and for helping to make our street or town a great place to live,” Mr Heslop said.
Founded in Melbourne in 2003 following the eventual discovery of the lonely death of an elderly woman, Neighbour Day has grown from a simple idea in a Letter to the Editor to an annual celebration endorsed by neighbours, community leaders and local, state and federal politicians from every party.
Globally it has gained the support of Prince Charles and Bill Clinton.
In 2006, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan pledged the organisation’s support to promote Neighbour Day worldwide. Now steps are in place for it to become an official UN Observance Day which could lead to an International Year of Neighbourliness being declared following ratification by the UN General Assembly.
“The great thing about Neighbour Day is that it costs nothing to participate and what you do to celebrate is really only limited by the imagination of you and your neighbours,” Mr Heslop said.
“After all, the community you want starts at your front door.”
To find out what is happening in your community on Neighbour Day, pick up a copy of next week’s Bendigo Weekly.
