Historical November–December 2025 article. Dates, prices, services and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
Nothing makes me happier than watching our daughter Feronia dance with her friends on our front lawn while her mom sings as part of her band during our neighborhood’s annual Porchfest. It’s exactly the kind of event that turns Skinker-DeBaliviere into a micro-community, a true gathering of neighbors within this larger city of St. Louis (which I also love). Our neighborhood does a fantastic job of scheduling, sponsoring and organizing countless community events throughout the year.
In fact, one of the reasons we chose the house in which we live is because our neighbor was gardening in his yard when we toured the house.
He took the time to chat and fill us in on Skinker-DeBaliviere’s history.
We knew instantly that this is a tightly-knit community. Chatting with neighbors was baked into our lives here from day one. Porchfest is one of our favorite local events because we love sharing Fei’s music with our friends and neighbors.
But the coolest thing was when I realized our mailman was leaning against a tree and enjoying the show.
He came on his day off just to participate in the day. He’s a great guy and we’re lucky to have him. Sometimes our neighborhood events are even more hyper-local.
Each autumn our street organizes a block party for the 6000 and 6100 portion of Westminster Place. It’s great because the street is closed off for the afternoon and everyone brings out lawn chairs to chat, listen to music and eat together. Our daughter’s favorite part of the day is when the local firehouse sends over a ladder truck. Nia loves the Dirty Thirty and is quite smitten by the firefighters.
I love bragging about our street and we’re lucky to be here.
But I also believe our neighborhood is following a model that has been replicated for generations but that is too often lost in this busy modern era. It’s no one’s fault because organizing things like block parties, neighborhood yards sales or the upcoming Wintermarkt takes a lot of time and energy, things that are in short supply nowadays.
But it takes a village to make a village. Volunteers, local shops and area business all benefit from each other. I’m certain that our own small business (a home daycare) benefits from participating in local events. And I hope that the families we meet benefit in return when their kiddos become members of our family.
On a personal level, I’m quite a chatter so I really enjoy hanging out with my neighbors and making small talk. It’s also a great time to build ties across generations in a way that interest-based activities (as opposed to location-based) don’t do in the same way.
I enjoy running groups, for example, but they aren’t the best way to meet everyone from the age of three to 83.
In contrast, many of my neighbors have met both my octogenarian dad and our eight-month-old daughter. Multi-generational ties give the neighborhood a sense of continuity that is both geographical and durational.
The amazing stories of prior generations provide an example of who we can be today and into the future. So I really hope to see all of you at the upcoming Wintermarkt. And at the next dinner social, dog park fundraiser, newspaper party or garden tour. Wherever we meet, thanks for being part of our community!
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, November–December 2025.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times2025_11.pdf, printed page(s) 5; PDF page(s) 5.
