#19: 'If You Want to Change Your Community, I'd Start With the People Who Live Closest to You'

David from Missouri has spent much of his life learning that seemingly ordinary experiences can lead us to moments of clarity and purpose years later. For him, that's meant turning lessons from childhood into practical acts of neighborliness. As a neighboring advocate, author, and teacher, David's leadership has sparked a nationwide movement committed to helping people strengthen local connections, foster regular acts of neighborliness, and combat pervasive isolation and loneliness. 

Those early lessons often stemmed from David's entrepreneurial spirit cultivated while working closely with his grandfather - a man with an eighth-grade education whom David remembers as one of the smartest people he's ever known. David launched an unsuccessful earthworm business at age 10 and went on to plant a pumpkin patch, pick rocks, haul hay, and mow neighbors' lawns, among other ventures.

In this episode, I talk with David about how those early experiences helped form his understanding of hard work, faith, community, and what it means to truly know the people who live around us.

David shares how his grandfather taught him less through lectures than by inviting him to work alongside him. Those hours together gave David something more valuable than a work ethic: stories about the Great Depression, a one-room schoolhouse, family sacrifice, education, and why certain things in life are worth working toward.

We also talk about a consequential season when David left law school after his father's death and spent a summer praying and wrestling with what direction his life should take. His Christian faith became central to that decision-making process. The path he ultimately chose led him to pursue journalism, introduced him to the woman who would become his wife, and eventually led him to forge a career building local communities and human connection.

David explains how a meaningful life is built through small acts repeated faithfully with the people right in front of us.

In this episode, we explore:

• What David's failed earthworm business taught him about preparation, persistence, and trying again
• The lessons his grandfather passed down while they picked rocks, hauled hay, and raised cattle
• How stories from the Great Depression and a one-room school shaped David's understanding of life and purpose
• The role David's Christian faith and prayer played in a major turning point after his father's death
• How leaving law school for a small-town newspaper changed the course of David's life
• Why knowing our neighbors' names is such a powerful first step toward finding belonging
• The difference between being a harmless neighbor and becoming an engaged one
• How loneliness and intentional isolation can weaken the relationships closest to us
• Why our individual gifts — whether baking cookies, writing notes, hosting dinner, or playing ping-pong — can become tools for connection
• How a simple effort to celebrate good neighbors grew into Missouri Good Neighbor Week
• Why stronger communities can begin with small acts of kindness close to home
• David's reminder that "neighboring's a crock pot, not a microwave"

Sincere thanks to Lee Williams for his fantastic production of this and every episode of Perennial Pen.

Reflection Question

Who is one person living near you whose name, story, or needs you don't yet know — and what is one small, sincere step you could take this week to get to know that person better?

Connect with David Burton

• Learn more about David Burton and his work with University of Missouri Extension: https://extension.missouri.edu/people/david-burton
• Grab a copy of David's book, "The Neighboring Playbook: Becoming America's Most Neighborly State"
• Connect with David Burton on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-burton-5041728/
• Learn more about Missouri Good Neighbor Week: https://missourigoodneighborweek.com/

Call to Action

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