This is a time of uncertainty and stress, and yet there are some silver linings. One of the positive trends emerging during COVID-19 is caremongering.

The news media still reports more bad than good news. There are people we love who are battling the virus, some of them aren’t making it.  People we love are putting themselves in higher risk circumstances providing essential services. We’re trying to keep up with latest advice from medical professionals.

In this series on Emerging Trends for Social Connection (in a pandemic), I’ll explore four trends:

1. Connecting and Re-connecting with Neighbours
2. Caremongering
3. Everyday heroes
4. Virtual Connections

What is Caremongering?

I don’t know if you’ve heard about caremongering, but this term was coined by Canadians.

(Yep, I’m giving a little shout out to Canadians here!!)

Caremongering is described in these articles by the BBC, CTV and the Washington Post. The idea is to create a movement that is the opposite of fearmongering or scaremongering.

Caremongering is where people come together to support their communities. Instead of actions being based on fear and hate, caremongering encourages actions based on care and love.

Helping Hands

I’m grateful to be part of a caremongering movement called Helping Hands. A group of volunteers have established a private Facebook group to support citizens in our community.

The group rules are simple:

• if you have a NEED, you create a post, and
• if you have an OFFER, you create a post.

In case you want to organize something similar, this is basically how it’s set up:

• Each neighbourhood has a volunteer coordinator.
• Paper posters on telephone poles provide contact information for the local volunteer coordinator.
• Residents who have a need can post directly into the Facebook group or they can call a coordinator and explain what they are looking for. The coordinator will post on their behalf.
• Lastly, there’s an awesome team of volunteer group administrators who curate the posts to keep the content consistent with the intent of the group. They also turn off comments once a request has been completed.

Stories of Caremongering

So what’s happening in my caremongering group?

• A local restauranteur is making free soup every day. She collects donated toilet paper, wipes, hand sanitizer and drops these off with the soup to elderly care facilities.
• There are small errands: if someone is going to the grocery store, they pick up a few items and get an etransfer for the costs.
• People within the group promote local restaurants and businesses.  Want to know which local restaurants are open for delivery or takeout? Have a look at photos of great takeout meals promoting local businesses.
• People are providing safety equipment for free no questions asked.  Need a homemade mask? Just ask.
• A couple is using their 3D printer to make free plastic ear savers – a strap for the back of the head to hook the face mask on.
• People who have a device they don’t need are loaning it to those who usually use the public library facilities to stay connected.
• One man who couldn’t afford to buy himself food asked for help and got it. Others just buy extras when they go shopping and offer these groceries free to whoever needs them, no questions asked.
• Neighbours offer to swap board games or puzzles.
• People are getting creative. Some are offering free dog-walking. One woman offered her large backyard with a basketball hoop for kids play time. She takes appointments and sanitizes her basketball before each use.
• Women have offered single parents to watch their kids from a social distance to enable them to go get groceries.  Here’s the offer: “if you need groceries, I will come and park my car right beside yours. You leave your kiddos in your car. We won’t break social distancing. Obviously, if there was an issue, I would fly out of my car . I will guard them with my life. ♡”

In the midst of ugly news – racism, unwarranted violence – caremongering is doing exactly what was intended: reminding me of how kind and compassionate most of us are.

Local Caremongering Acts All Over the World

When I was little, we used to say “Think Globally. Act Locally”. I’d say that when I consider caremongering, while Canadians may have coined the term, it’s not a Canadian-only dynamic. In fact, with caremongering you could reverse the old saying to “Act Locally All Over the Globe”.

Here are some examples of how caremongering is evident around the world and have been captured by various authors or publications:

Many of us will have heard artists in Italy singing or performing on their balconies for neighbours to enjoy.

Or how about the two children who did a porch concert for an elderly neighbour who was self-isolating?

A student wrote an article in the New York Times online asking “What Acts of Kindness Have You Heard About or Participated In During Coronavirus?“

And Elle magazine highlighted “12 Individual Acts Of Kindness Proving Love And Humanity Will Win Over The Coronavirus“.

So during this #MentalHealthAwareness, be inspired to be a caremonger. Be inspired to commit “Random Acts of Kindness During the Coronavirus Outbreak“.

Will Caremongering Continue?

One big question is whether positive trends that we see emerging during this COVID-19 pandemic will continue. Wouldn’t caremongering be a wonderful legacy of this pandemic situation?  One of the members of the Helping Hands Facebook group said that she’s never felt such a sense of community as she has during this time.

As lovely as it is to hear that she feels a stronger sense of community now, it’s also a sad contrast with how we behaved before COVID-19. But, one thing that keeps me optimistic about the future is this quote:

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world: indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
— Margaret Mead

Could caremongering become not just a temporary trend, but an ongoing attribute of our human characters? Could this pandemic change the way that humanity behaves, and what we value?

The caremongering stories of people coming together to support neighbours in need are heart-warming.

Kindness can be one of the most underrated values in our society…but its impact on the person being kind and those receiving the act of kindness cannot be underestimated.

If you have a choice, choose to be kind. Be a caremonger.

Do you have a story to share about caremongering in your life or community?

We would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below. 

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