You do windows? Yes! Imagine someone washing your windows, shoveling your snow, putting up shelves in your home, giving you a ride, or teaching you about the Internet without asking for a dime!
It’s happening in Minneapolis, MN thanks to Pillsbury Neighborhood Services’ Community Barter Network (CBN), a computerized neighbor-to-neighbor exchange of services for credits.
Community bartering is the perfect solution for individuals like Mildred Wing, who is no longer able to be very active. Now a neighbor boy (the son of a CBN participant) walks her dog and other CBN participants deliver her food. In return, Mildred has assisted with a CBN telephone survey, allowing her to give back. Some of the credits she spends also come from a pool of credits donated by other participants.
In addition to assisting those in need, CBN is helping area residents build a strong sense of community. After CBN participant Molly Reinemann rejuvenated the garden of Meredith and Paul Falley, a disabled couple, their friendship developed to the point that Molly now house sits when Meredith and Paul are away.
The notion of community bartering has been on the minds of Pillsbury Neighborhood Services (PNS) leadership for several years, according to program coordinator Carole Broad. In 1995, the right pieces fell together; agency staff and community residents met to develop a barter program for a community where many individuals were short on cash, but long on talent.
In CBN, time is not money, but credits. An hour of service earns one credit in the barter system. Participants start with five credits so they can use the services right away. Every time a participant performs a service, s/he receives one credit per hour of work. Later that same participant can use the earned credits to receive an impressive variety of services from bike repair to massage therapy to tax preparation.
Everyone completes a satisfaction survey after each barter. Credits earned and spent are recorded on a data base. Members receive periodic reports of their status within the system, much like bank statements.
CBN welcomed its charter members in January 1996. Since its inception, CBN has grown to include 145 members - most of whom live in south Minneapolis. Joining CBN is simple; members must simply attend an orientation, the times of which are posted at Pillsbury House in Minneapolis and in the CBN newsletter.
CBN’s unique approach has attracted media attention and the program welcomes enthusiastic new participants every month, says Broad, so expansion and improvement are always on the minds of CBN participants. Current projects include creating a CBN web site and promoting youth employment by linking teens to seniors through bartering. Recruiting more members of color has been and remains a top priority.
For information on CBN, contact (612) 824-0708. Pillsbury Neighborhood Services is a nonprofit social service agency that serves more than 35,000 individuals annually. Programs ranging from early childhood education to senior transportation (and everything in between!) are housed at PNS’s community centers in north and south Minneapolis. Call (612) 827-5814 for information on programs and activities. (ARA)
Courtesy of Article Resource Association; www.aracopy.com; e-mail: info@aracopy.com
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