PRESS RELEASE:
On Wednesday, August 17, the Asheville TimeBank is celebrating its first birthday, and all are invited! The party will be a potluck supper at the picnic shelter in West Asheville Park, at the end of Vermont Street, at 5:30 PM. People who are just curious are invited to come, as well as those who are members.
“Timebanking is catching on in Asheville now, and we have nearly 100 members,” said Debby Genz, one of the co-founders of the organization, and a previous coordinator of EmmaBucks. “With the Asheville TimeBank, people are providing services to one another outside the cash economy. This is building local resilience in our community. For example, one of our members loves to sew. She banked her hours doing alterations for one member, and then spent her hours having another member install a raised bed in her garden.” According to Genz, other exchanges have involved such diverse services as guided imagery healing, pie baking, yard work, office organization, electrical repairs, organizing a yard sale, cat-sitting, and rides to the airport.
At the birthday celebration, people will share stories about exchanges they have enjoyed making, and there will be a game that helps people match their talents with others’ needs.
Asheville TimeBank holds monthly potlucks and orientation opportunities for new and old members. In addition, people can receive an orientation by request at Firestorm Café in West Asheville. “We hold potlucks so that our members, new and old, can meet and get to know each other,” said Janet Black, another co-founder. “People are much more likely to set up an exchange when they have met face to face.”
Timebanks exist all over the world, and the more diverse they are, the greater is the variety of talents and skills the members can offer one another. Unlike “Asheville LETS”, no goods are exchanged, and each person’s hour is equivalent to everyone else’s hour. “Everyone has a skill to share, whether you are elderly or a teenager,” said Black, “and everyone needs a service someone else might enjoy providing.”
For more information, and to apply to join the Asheville TimeBank: www.ashevilletimebank.org
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