To Inspire:

It’s a rainy Friday here in Central Ohio, so I’m going to share a feel-good story that will hopefully bring a smile to your face. A story about a little boy’s simple gesture that brought a neighborhood together.

Four-year-old Roman Butzlaff of Concord, North Carolina loves to connect with people. If you walk, bike, or drive past his house, he will greet you with a big wave and a big “hey.” His mother said he wakes up every day excited to get greet people – it’s the first thing he wants to do.

While outwardly a cheerful kid, inside Roman was dealing with some loneliness. His parents recently split up, and his father and his grandparents moved out of state. Then his habit of waving and greeting his neighbors brought him a whole new support system.

It started with the neighbor across the street, Wade Fulgum. Wade was used to seeing Roman waving and greeting people every day and decided he wanted to meet this little boy. Wade introduced himself to Roman and his mother, then started spending time talking with him and then doing things with the boy. One by one, other neighbors followed suit, waving, stopping to chat, and taking part in whatever activities Roman was doing.

Roman started inviting his new friends to things – soccer, basketball, and baseball practices and games. Other neighbors came to his swimming lessons, and some even came to his preschool open house. When his birthday rolled around, his mom knew exactly who she needed to invite to his party.

Roman’s joy brought him a new friends and a bunch of adopted grandparents but it also brought together a dozen or so older neighbors who didn’t really know each other before. That group has a new support system and new friends to spend time with. All from a little boy who waved and said, “hey.”

We hear so much about the loneliness epidemic, especially for older adults. What a gift to build a community around connection and joy. As one of Roman’s neighbors said, “If the world was like this child, what an awesome, awesome place it would be.”

Written by Michelle O’Brien, Manager of Marketing & Communications

Source: Hartman, Steve. A 4-year-old boy’s simple habit of waving to his neighbors transformed his North Carolina community. cbsnews.com