Nominate your Good Neighbors

We live in a country of second chances and this is yours.

We have decided to extend the deadline for nominations for The Spokesman-Review’s annual Good Neighbor contest. The new deadline is Wednesday. There won’t be a third chance, so if you have been meaning to write and tell us about your wonderful neighbor, do it now.

Summer is a time of yard work and weekends at the lake, but it really only takes a few minutes to put pen to paper and tell us about the person at the core of your neighborhood. And by doing so you could reap the benefits — a catered block party for each of the three winners (North Side, South Side and Valley).

Each winner will be featured in a Voice story detailing their contributions and will receive an engraved plaque noting their status as a Good Neighbor.

The definition of a good neighbor is a person who doesn’t think twice about offering help when they see it’s needed and won’t take payment for offering their services. (Payment in brownies, however, might be accepted).

And there are so many different ways to be a good neighbor. A neighbor may offer their lawn equipment for special jobs, volunteer their pickup for trips to the dump or keep your grass from dying when you go on vacation. A good neighbor checks in on elderly residents, running errands for them or bringing them to doctor visits. A good neighbor might bring you a casserole when you are sick or let all the neighborhood kids use the pool.

Whatever their skill, write us a letter of 250 words or less to tell us about your neighbor (see the information box for details). Be specific. Tell us exactly what good deeds they have done and what kind of impact they have had on your neighborhood. Be sure to include your neighbor’s name, address and phone number, as well as your own.

Previous Good Neighbor contest winners will help select this year’s winners.