I recently heard someone say "If you've seen one small town, you've seen one small town." This rang in my ears this weekend while attending a conference this weekend in Des Moines, Iowa as people assumed exactly the opposite.

Why do so many people who live in cities lump all rural communities together?

One prominent speaker, for example, talked about how community-oriented rural people are, and said that rural neighbors will harvest their neighbor's crop before their own is harvested or hold a fundraiser for someone who gets sick and has high medical bills. And while it's true that some small towns do these things, not all of them do.

Just like cities, every rural community has a different feel to it, a different personality. Some small towns have a great sense of community, others do not. Certain rural schools emphasize entrepreneurship, others produce good sports teams, or they do both or do neither.

There are small towns bursting with pride in their community, and it shows. When residents believe that they live somewhere special and valuable, they take care of their town. The shop at local businesses, attend high school sporting events, greet each other on the street, at the post office, and in the cafe. When they see someone new in town, they tend to be friendly because the mark of a proud community is wanting others to feel welcome.

Towns who have lost their pride watch hopelessly as businesses on Main Street close and no one does anything to save or replace them. Their waves of hello don't have the positive energy, and when you walk into the local bar, they're likely to give you a look that says, "Why on earth would you choose to come here?"

It is up to residents of the town to decide which type of town they want to create.  What kind of community is your small town?