Put it in the TimeBank

A small group gathered on a cold January morning in the basement of Clifton Universal Unitarian Church on Payne Street. About 30 people in all, some stood against the walls because all of the chairs were taken. At the head of the room sat Jennifer Turner, director of the Louisville TimeBank, and her co-directors, husband Joseph Turner, and her sister-in-law, also named Jennifer Turner. Everyone read over the TimeBank materials, the papers that explained the mission, rules of membership, fees, responsibilities, and the personal survey and membership forms. Then someone grabbed a ball of yarn and demonstrated what a TimeBank actually does. The woman stood up and said that she could offer tutoring for a school-aged child and asked of the group who would be interested in this service. Hands shot up and the yarn was tossed to another person–an older woman stood and accepted the tutoring and offered to teach someone’s child how to swim. More hands shot up and someone else stood to accept the swim lessons and offer concrete labor for sidewalks and walkways. The yarn circled and crisscrossed the room repeatedly until the group had created a web of connection, a community of people helping one another.

At heart, this is what a TimeBank has to offer. TimeBanking may be new to Louisville, but the movement began in Washington, D.C. founded by Dr. Edgar Cahn in 1995. Today more than 40 states and 34 countries have working TimeBanks. A TimeBank is an organization that brings together people in the same community who provide goods and services with an alternative currency. This currency – the Time Dollar – works like this: You answer a request on the TimeBank website from Member A who needs her house weatherized. You spend one hour caulking windows, therefore you earn one Time Dollar. This Time Dollar can be spent on an offer made by another member. Perhaps you want to learn how to crochet, so you spend your Time Dollar receiving personal crochet lessons from Member B. It is not necessary to do equal exchanges like a bartering system. TimeBanks operate through community involvement. The premise of TimeBanking is to do meaningful work and receive meaningful work, regardless of what you or any other member can afford. And this is welcome news during an ailing economy.

“Everyone’s time is equal, whether you’re a lawyer, or providing a service like cooking or cleaning, something our monetary economy doesn’t value as equal.” explained Jennifer, director of the Louisville TimeBank. The great thing, she continued, about the TimeBank is that “you don’t have to exchange services or goods with the same person. You have an entire community to choose from.” Jenny Whitlock, a Personal Concierge, echoed this point. “I’ve always done a lot of trade but the challenge has been finding folks who have some thing or some skill that you want who also wants whatever it is you have to offer. What’s so exciting about TimeBank is that you can choose from a community’s worth of offerings.”

TimeBanks that have been operating for many years, such as Hour Exchange in Portland, Maine, post offers from professionals that include psychological counseling, physician appointments, therapeutic massage, public relations consulting, child care, and legal assistance. The Turners hope the response to the Louisville TimeBank will be this strong and creative. At this stage of the game, the Turners are focusing on signing up individual members. Eventually, they hope to follow the course that many successful TimeBanks take by involving community organizations. These businesses or nonprofits could provide volunteers to help clear a member’s acreage in exchange for providing food or meeting space to members of the TimeBank. Eventually, the Louisville Time Bank hopes to create a TimeBank Free Whole Person Health Clinic and a TimeBank Grocery/Food Bank. These are lofty goals that can be built through community.

If you are interested in joining the Louisville TimeBank, there is a yearly $25 member fee for individuals. For families, the fee is $40. This fee covers the cost of doing national background checks on every applicant as well, as the cost for materials.

–Amy Miller

To learn more about the Louisville TimeBank:

Louisville.timebank.org
facebook.com/thelouisvilletimebank

To learn more about TimeBanks USA:

timebanks.org

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