About Good Neighbors
Core Purpose
Good Neighbors: Celebrating Our Differences is a Miss America Opportunity Service Initiative dedicated to fostering kindness, belonging, and connection within communities. Mary Kamara-Hagemeyer, Miss Sunrise Side 2024 leads this initiative through facilitating connection circles, educational workshops, public appearanes, speaking engagements, and guiding business leaders on community belonging. By partnering with I AM Academy, Mary adovocates for kindness and inclusivity through student mentorship and community cultural celebrations.
Mary Kamara-Hagemeyer, Miss Sunrise Side 2024
Hi! I'm Mary - My passion is connecting people and advocating for kindness and inclusion. The Miss America Opportunity has acted as a springboard for success - I've strengthened my community building skills and championed Good Neighbors across Michigan! I'm proud to advocate for my passion while representing the MAO.
Out in the Community
"We already HAVE diversity, our job is the fairness and belonging part."
- Mary Kamara-Hagemeyer
Resources!
Websites and Organizations
- Global Oneness Project – globalonenessproject.org
Stories in multimedia form promoting empathy and global citizenship! - Learning for Justice – learningforjustice.org
Access tools for teaching empathy, inclusion, and belonging! - Facing History and Ourselves – facinghistory.org
Providing historical context for identity, diversity, and justice for all people.
Book and Podcast Recommendations
Books:
- The Art of Neighboring – Jay Pathak & Dave Runyon
- I’m Still Here – Austin Channing Brown
- Dare to Lead – Brené Brown
- So You Want to Talk About Race – Ijeoma Oluo
Podcasts:
- Code Switch (NPR)
- Julie’s Library – with Julie Andrews
- Circle Round (NPR)
Children's Book Recommendations
- Black is Brown is Tan - Arnold Adoff
- A Family Like Ours - Alice Lee and Frank Murphy
- Last Stop on Market Street - Matt de la Peña
- All Are Welcome - Alexandra Penfold
- The Name Jar - Yangsook Choi
- In Every House on Every Street - Jess Hitchman
- Come With Me – Holly M. McGhee