About

A Time Bank is a community of people and organizations who agree to spend and earn Time Dollars. A Time Dollar is something you earn when you help a neighbor for one hour. You can spend that Time Dollar on services and goods offered through the Time Bank.

Our Time Bank is a caring and interconnected community of people who, by exchanging services, help each other as we share our abilities, talents, dreams and stories.

We are committed to rebuilding the concept of community where ordinary people can work together to meet each others’ needs. By mobilizing the abundant resources within our membership, we increase our options beyond simply buying services to solve our problems and discover that we already have what we need to build a thriving community.

The friendships we build by exchanging services go far beyond fulfilling our basic needs. By both giving and receiving, we change ourselves. We learn to appreciate the value of each and every member’s talents and abilities, and challenge ourselves to accept each other’s differences, differences that previously have kept us apart. We also come to believe in the value of our own contributions, and in the context of trusting friendships, we find that we can express our vulnerabilities without abdicating our strengths. We do not separate our community into those who need and those who provide - we recognize that we all have needs and we all have gifts to share.

We are committed to changing the way society defines power and privilege, moving away from a system that separates the “haves” and “have-nots” to a network of people who know and care for each other and can assure that we all feel supported, capable and valued. As our community grows, we are creating an environment that encourages collaboration not just between members, but with our neighbors, and not just between individuals but also among service agencies and community institutions.

Generously written and shared by Lehigh Valley Community Exchange

How It Works:Life of a Time Dollar

The concept is simple. For every hour of service provided to another Time Bank member you earn one Time Dollar. Time Dollars are a community currency that members earn by using their time, energy, skills, and talents to help others. Time Banking is about local individuals, organizations or businesses helping each other in one-to-one exchanges or in group projects. Members help rebuild neighborhood networks and strengthen communities.
You, the Member, can spend your Time Dollars on any number of services such as minor home repair, computer assistance, music lessons, transportation, haircuts, home baked bread, or having someone clean out your dirty fridge. You can even save up for future use. Members of Burlington Time Banks help each other in ways that family and neighbors have traditionally done.
It’s your choice, it’s your time!
What are people offering in our Time Bank?
Here are a few examples:
transportation, babysitting, making chili, cooking meals, baking bread, making sushi, sewing/mending, how to cook efficiently, hair cuts, make overs, snow shoveling, house cleaning, laundry, dog walking, dog sitting, help organizing your email, reiki, aromatherapy, massage, acupuncture, therapeutic horseback riding, personal training, walking buddies, yoga, single parent support (from another single mom), how to tie a bow tie, gift wrapping, help with moving, oil changes, painting, play groups, use of a wood-fired hot tub, childbirth education, book and media club, going to scottish dance lessons in Montpelier, skiing lessons, volleyball, bird watching, travel consultation, special education advocacy, computer help, basic blogging, beginning Japanese lessons, Arabic study group, French and German lessons, socially responsible investing, tutoring, economics, help with term papers, knitting, drawing, quilt making lessons, Japanese stab binding, scrapbooking, guitar, banjo, and violin lessons, and a Singing Telegram and more!
What are people looking for?
What might you offer? What would help make your life easier or more rewarding? Someone cooking you dinner, doing your laundry, or giving you guitar lessons?

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