Thank you for your interest in the Care and Share Time Bank (aka CSTB)!
I'm Vilvi Vannak, president of the CSTB. I look forward to welcoming you into our organization!
We’re reviewing your application now; you will receive another email once approved.
Being in the time bank is an EXCELLENT way to build community by helping your neighbors, getting help from others, and hopefully saving money and making new friends along the way!
Some guidelines and other things you’ll need to know before becoming a member and stepping into the world of time banking:
- Please understand that, as a time bank, we offer neighborly services to each other. Members provide services to the best of their ability and do not guarantee their work.
- Please understand that the Care and Share Time Bank is a coordinating agency only and cannot guarantee the performance of anyone who is referred.
- Please understand that expenses for any materials used will be the responsibility of the recipient, and expenses will be agreed upon before the service is delivered.
- Please understand that the Care and Share Time Bank cannot be held responsible for any injury to persons or damage to property experienced while involved with the program. By joining, you agree to hold the Care and Share Time Bank, as well as its employees and/or agents harmless from any and all claims or liabilities for any work performed hereunder.
- Please understand that the function of the time bank is to facilitate the exchange of services within the community. It is your responsibility to use the same caution you would use in other circumstances to get to know a person, make reference checks, and use your instincts before engaging with another time bank member (especially for babysitting, elder care, and driving). hOurWorld.org and Care and Share Time Bank will not be held responsible and will not assume any liability for claims, damages, or any other consequences that may arise from this arrangement.
- Please understand that if you use your personal vehicle in rendering volunteer service through the Care and Share Time Bank, you will, in accordance with Ohio law, arrange to keep in effect adequate and legal automobile liability insurance covering bodily injury and property damage.
- By becoming a member of Care and Share Time Bank, you are pledging not to reveal the contents of the hOurWorld Software, nor any other documentation provided by Care and Share Time Bank to non-members, especially any personal information provided.
- You are agreeing to abide by the core values, rules, and guidelines provided by hOurWorld.org and Care and Share Time Bank for proper and courteous behavior. You are pledging to proceed with good intent toward being of service to others in the community and to treat other members in the time bank with respect and kindness.
We like to ensure all new members are well versed in how time banks work as well as how the website functions, so we also ask you to watch this video and to please ask any questions you might have. While you await the status of your application, please take the time to watch the previously mentioned video or reach out if you have any questions. Once approved and after setting up your account/reviewing the required materials, we’ll credit your account with two time credits so that you may start exchanging.
Thank you again for your interest, you’ll hear from us again soon!
Vilvi Vannak
President, Care and Share Time Bank
PS: We have a potluck on the third Sunday of the month! It's a wonderful way to meet people, learn about the time bank, and often find people to exchange with. CSTB potlucks are open to the public and free to attend. Everyone in the area who would like to learn about time banks is welcome to join us!
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Some FAQs to help you get started:
Q: How can it all be free?
A: Time banks are run by volunteer members who get paid in time credits. The service exchanges do NOT exchange items, so it's all person-to-person exchanges of help and services.
Q: I'm worried about getting sick/catching COVID or another virus. How can I possibly join and participate?
A: NO PROBLEM! Our meetings are optional and nothing face-to-face is required. When you make and offer or request, you ONLY do what you are comfortable doing! Work outdoors in one of our community gardens, participate in a language class online, give advice over the phone, etc.
Q: I need to get help with something right away and haven't earned enough time credit to "pay" for it at this time. Can I "go into debt"?
A: Yes, some. We are big on promoting community! Which of us are always perfect? Sometimes we all need a little time and trust until we can get back to having a positive time bank account. We are neighbors; neighbors help neighbors. If someone is going more than ten hours in debt, if someone doesn't think they'll ever be able to pay, or if a person doesn't know how they can earn time credits, they should contact the CSTB President for assistance.
Q: I want to get/sell something for money or goods. Can I do this through the time bank?
A: No... the proper wording of an offer is everything! I can't say "I'll haul your stuff to the dump for 1 time credit plus $5 cash." I should say "I can haul your stuff to the dump for 1 time credit. You'll need to cover the cost of gas for my truck which will be $5." The cash is a separate transaction that has no bearing on the time credits spent.
Just two more things:
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Time Banking is NOT barter, it is the providing of "friendly neighborly favors" in consideration of nothing. There is no binding contract. The receiver gives nothing of monetary value to the provider.
The provider and receiver simply have a record of time they spent helping and being helped. They both have a conceptual and moral responsibility of reciprocity.
“Out of my abundance I ought to share, and when someone has shared with me, I ought to pass it on by sharing with my community in some way at some time.”
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These friendly neighborly favors (or stuff, I can give you my old ladder for example) have no connection to the cash economy. They ought never be indistinctly intertwined.
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Connect with us on social media!
Get updates on time bank events and activities right where you stay connected with the rest of your community. Spread the word by sharing
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cbustimebank
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/cbustimebank.bsky.social
Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/CareNShareTimeBank/
Facebook: Care and Share Chatroom
