‘Time bank’ members find value in sharing services, talents for free

Once or twice a month, Winkler gives Trahan a piano lesson at the latter’s East Lynn home. While there, Winkler, a Salem apartment dweller, uses Trahan’s washer and dryer to do her laundry. Neither pays the other for her services.

Winkler and Trahan are members of The Time Exchange of the North Shore, a Lynn-based organization that coordinates such arrangements for its participants.

The Time Exchange is part of a growing number of time banks in the United States and other countries, groups whose participants earn and spend “time dollars’’ based on hours of services they perform or receive.

In addition to saving money for its members, time banks can help build a sense of community, said Lauren Kilcoyne, an Americorps VISTA member who is coordinator of The Time Exchange.

“Throughout the North Shore, we have such cultural and socioeconomic diversity,’’ she said. “It’s great for people to interact with people they wouldn’t otherwise see on a regular basis. You can reach out further into the community.’’

In a sign of increasing interest in time banking in this area, the approximately 200-member group saw its member service hours triple last year and is now expanding its geographical reach.

Founded in Lynn more than a decade ago as the Lynn Time Bank, the nonprofit last year switched to its current name to reflect its growing presence outside that city. Recently, it has been working with local organizations in Peabody and Newburyport to introduce residents in those communities to The Time Exchange.

“We are really excited about it. This is the perfect time for this organization,’’ said Kilcoyne, noting that the opportunity to obtain services at no cost can be a particular benefit in a down economy.

The Time Exchange is not the region’s only time bank. Created in 2006, the Cape Ann Time Bank has 150 members, according to Cheryl Davis of Gloucester, the group’s membership coordinator.

“Our sole purpose is to create community, and the way we do it is by exchanging services with each other,’’ said Davis, adding that the group also offers members a way to learn new skills and activities, from ocean kayaking to different types of cooking.

A nearly all-volunteer group, The Time Exchange has no membership fee. The only requirements for joining are to fill out an application listing two references, and to attend an orientation. On a members-only portion of its website, the group lists members and the services they offer, along with an accounting of how many time dollars each person has.

Trahan, a semi-retired rehabilitation counselor who is president of the East Lynn Community Association, joined The Time Exchange about a year ago. In addition to the piano lessons from Winkler, she tapped the services of a member with a truck to move some furniture for her.

“I really like the spirit of it,’’ she said, of the community connections that time banking builds.

Winkler preceded Kilcoyne as the Time Exchange’s coordinator from 2009 to 2010 — also as an Americorps VISTA member — and has been an active member since. She works as a housing advocate for Serving People in Need, a Lynn organization that provides free office space to The Time Exchange.

“I really love that everyone is valued equally in The Time Exchange,’’ she said, noting that time dollars are earned solely based on hours of service provided, not on the type of service performed.

Winkler said she also appreciates the opportunity to learn new skills, noting that she has used time dollars to receive some training in website design.

Melissa Rauseo, the young-adult librarian at Peabody’s public library, joined The Time Exchange last May and is helping make local residents aware of it. Rauseo is also a member of the Healthy Peabody Collaborative, a Peabody group working with The Time Exchange.

“My favorite part of the time bank is the community-building it provides,’’ she said. “I’ve lived in Peabody my whole life, but in Peabody, people are somewhat disconnected. People work all over the place, they have very busy lives. . . . I love how this is allowing me to make connections.’’

The Lynn Time Bank began informally in 1998 as an initiative for parents of children with developmental disabilities in Lynn, according to Marcel Charpentier, founder of the group and a supervisor for the state’s Department of Developmental Services. In 2000, the time bank was formally organized and quickly opened itself to the whole Lynn community.

In 2004, the group was able to hire a director through a grant from the Department of Developmental Services. The funding expired after three years, however, and the group struggled along for several years, said Charpentier, a board member and past president.

Through the efforts of Winkler and now Kilcoyne, he said the renamed group is implementing a plan to enable its volunteer committees to oversee nearly all its functions.