We're up and ready!!

ok! It's time to begin!
To get to the web site - go to: http://community.timebanks.org - you have to lick on FIND TIME BANKS and locate Monadnock Time Bank in the alphabetical list - then click JOIN NOW.

To participate, you first need to join the time bank. Next, when you're ready, you log on and click the Give & Receive tab. Choose from any category to create your "ad". What do you need help with...or, better yet, how can you offer your assistance? There are so many ways to get involved - use your imagination!!

Let me know if you get stuck or need help. I'm not a web master by any means but I'm happy to do what I can.

Thank you and
Have fun!

Volunteering!

Recently our school had a clean up day. I'm not kidding, there was stuff being thrown out that dated back to the early 1990's. A lot of paper (recyclable), re-usable 3-ring binders, and books, books and more books. A lot of teaching texts and guides. So many wonderful reading books and reading magazines for kids... My husband took 2 large truck loads to our home and he and my son emptied it all into our barn. We've all been sorting through it - separating the re-usable from the recyclable and putting everything into piles. We've taken some to the "take it or leave it" house at the local dump (and happily saw some taken away). We'll take the paper and cardboard to the local recycling center. We'll take usuable items like yarn and cloth and paper to the local nursing home (actvity department), and we'll donate the books to Hospice or to home-schoolers.
It's been a tremendous amount of work. It's also been incredibly frustrating to see how thoughtlessly {we} discard goods - without regard to their final destination (landfills). It is disheartening after pleading with the school to be more aware and thoughtful during their cleaning out process and to see our lessons so disregarded.
And this is a school of only about 150 kids. How many kids does YOUR local school have - and have you ever checked out what is being tossed away during their "clean up" days?
There are organizations that will deliver a box/bin for books and will pick it up (when you want) for FREE. There are organizations that will do the same for school supplies..for FREE. Our school is aware of this and chooses to ignore it, relying instead on volunteers to clean up their mess.
Some great opportunities here to (a) help your school district beome aware of these recycling opporunities and (b) to become a VOLUNTEER.

http://www.gotbooks.com
http://www.charityguide.org

Why Participate?

People are unreasonable, selfish and self centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people might accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful you might win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest person with the biggest ideas can be shot down with the smallest person with the smallest mind.
Think big anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People who really need help may attack if you help them.
Try anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you might get kicked in the teeth.
Give the best you've got anyway.

How do we begin?

Community service. It starts with YOU. It starts with ME. Together we build the community we all want to live in. A community that is supportive and safe. A community where neighbor helps neighbor, not for monetary gain, but because it is the right thing to do. And, because, with reciprocity, what we give will come back to us. An equal exchange of goods for goods or service for service.

You don't have to have a lot to give. When you become a member you list services you can provide as well as services you need. The more involved you are the more "time credits" or "time dollars" you accrue. As you build your time bank you have "credits" to spend on services or goods listed.