You may belong to several communities and not realize it until one or several disappear.

A community can look like a group of people who show up at the same place, week after week, without thinking of themselves as anything special. For example, across the United States, community members come together to play pickleball each week. This is one of the fastest-growing sports among midlife and older age groups, and though they may see it as “just pickleball,” it’s much more than that.

A community is a group of people with common interests living in a particular area. It isn’t just formal groups or memberships. It includes groups you see often that share something with you, like an interest, a routine, or a place, and quietly become part of your life. Here are some everyday examples of communities most of us take for granted:

• Gym regulars
• Pickleball partners
• Dinner groups
• Neighbors
• Religious or volunteer groups

The key is that community is made up of consistent, familiar, mutual human connections. It does not have to be highly structured. You don’t have to get together frequently, and it doesn’t have to be deeply intimate for it to matter.

I’m currently a member of a dinner club where more than ten women gather monthly over dinner, each person taking a turn planning the event. Many of the members didn’t know each other beforehand, but several quickly became close. The possibilities for creating community are vast. Think of simple things like playing sports in the park with regulars, knowing your mail carrier or pharmacist by face and name, or having ongoing relationships with barbers, hair stylists, and nail technicians. Our communities are built out of our routines, our hobbies, and the people with whom we interact at a level that feels meaningful.

The problem is that many of us undervalue community until it disappears. Losing a community can lead to a feeling of loneliness or disconnection. It can be a very concrete feeling: not having anyone to call or talk to, and no one noticing changes in your life. Community is often invisible when we have it, but undeniable when it is gone.

Community as a Health Intervention

According to the Joint Economic Committee (2018), loneliness has been rising (nearly doubled) for U.S. adults since the 1980s. The World Health Organization (2026) recognizes loneliness as a major health concern. “Social isolation and loneliness are widespread, with around 16% of people worldwide – one in six – experiencing loneliness. While the latest estimates suggest that loneliness is most common among adolescents and younger people, people of all ages experience loneliness – including older people, with around 11.8% experiencing loneliness. A large body of research shows that social isolation and loneliness have a serious impact on physical and mental health, quality of life, and longevity.”

Loneliness is a global crisis. The U.K. created a “Minister of Loneliness” and started “social prescribing,” which has made it to the United States. Social prescribing is a healthcare model where medical professionals refer patients to non-clinical community programs rather than relying solely on medication. This means individuals being seen by a medical professional can be “prescribed” programs such as art, sports, community gardening, volunteering, mentoring, and support groups. The opportunities are vast.

Nature (2026) showed the well-being outcomes of social prescribing include improvements in happiness, life satisfaction, and reduced anxiety. If compared to a monetary investment, the U.K. researchers found that investing in ourselves (just by getting involved in our communities) will pay off in health and well-being. It’s never too early to start getting involved in community. Being aware of the advantages is useful to help keep us engaged continuously, rather than drifting into disconnect.

Some emotional benefits of community include: reduced stress, lower anxiety, sense of safety, and feelings of support. Some physical benefits include: lower cortisol, increased oxytocin, and improved long-term health.

The Subtle Power of Community Ties

As mentioned, community ties don’t have to be formal. Community includes the regular interactions we have with our neighbors. It includes the person who shovels their neighbor’s driveway when it snows. It includes the person who notices that someone hasn’t been around for a while. It is the casual elevator, hallway, and driveway interactions we have with our neighbors. All of these make us feel safe and connected. They allow us to reach out (or track someone down at the hospital) if we don’t see someone for a while.

An example of this is a senior center realizing someone hasn’t shown up in a few days. They track them down in the hospital, and individuals visit and reach out. That person may not have realized they were part of a community, but they were. These looser connections are still extremely valuable and add to the power of community and to our long-term health and well-being.

The Impact of Modern Life on Community

As the digital age allows us to work from home, and cars allow us to drive to and from specific destinations, there are fewer opportunities for spontaneous interactions with others. Even with the implementation of WhatsApp chats for neighborhoods, most people don’t know who the members are and don’t get to know them beyond the chat. Digital connections at work and in our neighborhoods do not equal embodied connection.

That said, we should not ditch technology as an aid for our connections. We can use technology strategically to help us find our communities. AI and other technologies can help us find our communities. We can learn what is available to us in our local communities and beyond. We can expand our networks with technology, which can lead to more interactions with others. Technology can also lower the barriers to community involvement as we find like-minded individuals in chats and online. In fact, that is how a pickleball chat group got started. Once-empty pickleball courts in a community became regularly used by people meeting for the first time, and a community developed.

Some Ways to Build Your Community

Start small:

• Say hello to neighbors
• Join one recurring activity
• Accept invitations

Reduce friction:

• Start or join a group chat
• Attend loosely structured gatherings

Don’t rely on just one community. Think of your community like a pie with multiple slices.

• Geographic (neighbors)
• Activity-based (sports, hobbies)
• Work-related
• Interest-based

Community requires effort and intention. The more energy we put into community, the more we will get out of it. Later in life, it is critical to us for our health and our well-being. Starting early is best, but it is never too late to start building a community. A man in his 90s, who had no children or family other than a sister who lived thousands of miles away and was isolated in his apartment, created a community. He invited the three neighbor children for ice cream every Wednesday. His immaculate home was covered in ice cream, and he couldn’t have been happier. It was such an important weekly event that when he died a few years later, the children asked to attend his funeral and spoke about the impact he had on their lives. They transformed his life too.