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Let's Build a People-Friendly Community

One where no one gets left behind

This week, Virginia is hosting a Dementia-Friendly Community Event—and it’s a beautiful, necessary step. When we take the time to understand someone else’s experience and shape our town around it, we’re doing something deeply meaningful.

But it’s also got me thinking...

Why do we have to wait until someone fits neatly into a box before we make space for them?

We talk about dementia-friendly, autism-friendly, cancer support—and every one of these is so important.

But what happens when you don’t fit one of the boxes?
What if your needs aren’t clearly labeled, but they’re still real?

👉 You’re recovering from surgery—not cancer—so you don’t qualify for hospital transport.
👉 You’re living with anxiety or burnout, but no diagnosis.
👉 You have a less common illness, and the supports that exist don’t include your situation.
👉 And sometimes, you just don’t know where to go or who to ask.

It’s time we start thinking about more than condition-specific care.
We need to ask: What would a people-friendly community look like?

A community where:

• We design support based on what someone needs, not what box they check
• We check in with those who aren’t already plugged in
• We create spaces not just for labels, but for lives

The Virginia Pages Network is being built with this in mind.
Yes, we’ll have focused spaces—wellness, youth, recovery, more.
But it’s not about boxes.
It’s about people.

Let’s keep asking: Who’s missing? Who’s quietly struggling? And how can we make space for them, too?

Because when we build a truly people-friendly community, no one gets left behind.