Fireplaces served as the primary way to warm homes during the winter before boilers, furnaces, and space heaters. For generations, there was a rhythm of preparation established by cutting wood for the winter. Wood cutting remains an embodied way to love our neighbors in our modern age. The labor of cutting, hauling, stacking, and storing firewood demands sacrifice. It is a physical and practical act of caring for our neighbors each winter.

During the holiday season, sometimes the best thing you can give your friends and neighbors is…less. Not a Christmas party, not even a Christmas gathering—just a few hours to pause, wrapped in a bit of lightness and brightness. That’s how our tradition of “Christmas Cheer To-Go” began. 

In the chill of the winter months, it is instinctive to retreat into the warmth of our homes. But winter also presents unique opportunities to love our neighbors in tangible and practical ways. Checking in on neighbors is a practice that can foster meaningful connection and offer important physical, emotional, and relational care.

It was a bright and chilly Sunday morning in December when my daughter and I waited silently with coffee and mimosas ready on the kitchen counter. We were uncertain if anyone would walk through our door for the first Holly Street Holiday Brunch.

Gratitude for delivery drivers cultivates hospitality for all those who serve us in unseen ways.

Chalk is ordinary material of the earth. This practice takes common elements and makes them holy. Chalk does not make a permanent mark. It fades with time, but each time we enter our home and see the inscription, we are reminded of our desire for our homes to be places of hospitality, welcome, and peace.

Caroling is a wonderful way to meet new neighbors, make memories with friends, and benefit from the all the gifts of singing songs.

Christmas lights hung outside your home are a tangible way to brighten the season for your neighbors. It may be a single strand lining the roof or an elaborate visual display, hanging Christmas lights is a historic Denver tradition that brings joy and light to your neighborhood.

Clearing a neighbor’s sidewalk this winter is remembered throughout the year. It provides a foundation when the seasons change. A summer backyard BBQ invitation arrives with gratitude when it comes with the gift of a clear sidewalk that winter.