Author: timeexchangelb

2018 Recap, Next Repair Cafe & More!

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This year has been filled with many great gifts and connections! From individual exchanges between neighbors, to over 20 learning groups and Repair Cafes. Together we completed over 200 exchanges, totalling over 500 hours of service as well as repaired 165 broken items! Our group events included 4 cooking classes, a self-defense class for women, a 3 month long yoga class series at Drake Park, 4 Repair Cafes and coordinating the annual People’s State of the City event with our organizational partners. Besides relaying information and sharing our story via social media, we also knocked on over 3,100 doors to let neighbors know about the exciting community events that were happening in their neighborhood!

Our heartfelt gratitude to all who participated, especially the members who gave their time and shared their skills by planning, teaching, and making repairs! We would also like to send a special thank you to our team of leaders, who keep things moving along…we are so grateful for you, Debra Walker, Derald Tucker, Erin Foley, Gloria Colazo, Kathleen O’Daniels, Olivia Marquez and Rondii Colson!

In 2019 we will jump right back into planning even more community time-banking events. If you have any suggestions or ideas, please don’t hesitate to contact us! Let us know what you would like to learn or what you would like to teach – or any other exciting visions you may have for our organization.

Because of each and every one of you, LBTE has grown and evolved throughout our 8 year tenure and is able to continue to offer our network of skills, resources, and opportunities to the community going forward. We are grateful for your participation and support and so proud of the work we have done together!

While the LBTE runs on time dollars, the rest of the world hasn’t caught up (yet!) and we are in need of monetary funds to help sustain operating costs for our office and to pay staff. We ask that all members that can consider making their annual membership donation before the end of the year. All donations are tax-deductible. The suggested donation is $30, or $15 for students and seniors – but any amount helps and will be accepted gratefully!

Click here to make your online donation.

To pay by check or money order, please make payable to “Community Partners f.b.o. LBTE” and mail to: PO BOX 40151 Long Beach, CA 90804

Thank you for your support. The Long Beach Time Exchange could not exist without you!

Have a cheerful and safe holiday season!

Sincerely,

Your LBTE Team!

Pop-up Repair Cafe Feb 2019 - Save the Date

 

Repair Cafe Fall 2018 Summary

THANK YOU to all who participated, volunteered, shared their skills and tools, baked delicious brownies (Iris) and attended our last Repair Cafe! And a very important thank you as well to those who saved and brought in their broken items instead of throwing them away! Over 70 broken items were brought in, of those 52 were repaired successfully, and another 13 were repaired to a degree and attendees also received advice from our experts on how to go about ordering parts needed to get their items fixed.

“Victor Santos was a great help, he really went the extra mile to see what the problem was. Unfortunately my Ninja blender was not fixable but my Kuerig still has hope. I hope to have the kill switch part next time when we come back so he can try to fix it again.” Rosa Delarocha

“Bruna repaired 6 of my clothes with holes – Thank you! She even reinforced some vintage clothing so it wouldn’t rip again. This is an awesome event, so helpful – very much appreciated! Nancy Woo

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Get Involved!

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GET INVOLVED!
Your Long Beach Time Exchange is growing and expanding and we are looking for members who would like to step up to leadership positions and help guide the TE into new and exciting frontiers. If you have always wanted to get more involved with your community, meet your neighbors, and be “in the know” for all things Long Beach, then becoming a Time Exchange Ambassador, Connector, or Educator is for you. See below for a brief description of each committee, then click on the link to apply!
Ambassadors Committee
The mission of the LBTE’s Ambassadors Committee is to increase awareness about interest and membership in the Time Exchange. Ambassadors do outreach by tabling at events, leading presentations, and community outreach. Members will gain a greater understanding of Long Beach’s diverse neighborhoods, community organizations, and events. You will have opportunities to develop your public speaking and community building skills.

We are looking for members who have the ability and desire to:

  • Communicate confidently and mindfully with diverse members of the community.
  • Adapt to different contexts and situations and show the potential time banking offers.
  • Speak from experience about using time banking personally, or through an organization.

Key areas of team’s responsibility:

  • Developing criteria and strategies for outreach.
  • Coordinating and taking part in outreach opportunities (tabling at events, canvassing, presentations to neighborhood groups, organizations, etc.)
  • Contacting other LBTE members who might be interested in helping out and getting involved.

What you’ll gain:

  • Learning more about Long Beach geography, residents, community organizations, and groups.
  • Developing and practicing public-speaking skills
  • The satisfaction of making a tangible impact by expanding the time-banking movement in Long Beach

Time commitment: 4-8 hours per month spent representing LBTE at community events and meetings, or conducting outreach one-on-one’s.  Terms are 1 year with possible renewal.

To apply, click here to view and fill out the application.

Community Connectors Committee
While Ambassadors bring in new members, the mission of the Community Connectors is to help increase exchanges between existing members. Our recent Dare to Share campaign was born in this committee. Connectors brainstorm ways to make it easier for members to connect, share and exchange, as well as welcome new members. You will gain a greater understanding of time-banking along with the satisfaction of helping members connect with one another.

We are looking for members who love to help others connect, and:

  • Are good listeners
  • Have the ability to communicate confidently and mindfully with diverse members of the community
  • Are ONE (or more) of the following:
    • Tech savvy; OR
    • Great face-to-face communicators; OR
    • Skilled on-the-phone communicators; OR
    • Have strong writing and editing skills

Key areas of team’s responsibility:

  • Developing strategies for connecting members to one another, including helping members with:
    • Posting and searching for offers and requests in hOurworld
    • Finding matches in the network
    • Navigating operating system so offers/requests are posted and current
    • Providing orientation to new members
    • Helping offline members stay active and informed

What you’ll gain:

  • A good sense of the assets and needs in the community
  • The satisfaction of making helpful matches for members who might not have been able to connect otherwise.

Time commitment: 4-8 hours per month spent helping members connect to one another, making phone calls and helping to welcome new members. Terms are 1 year with possible renewal.
To apply, click here to view and fill out the application.

Learning Committee
The Learning Committee is responsible for planning and launching workshops and events for members and the community. Committee members create multi-cultural spaces/events where learning, connectivity and sharing can take place; cooking classes, wellness, art, and small community potlucks are a few examples of the events this committee would lead. You will gain event planning experience and the satisfaction of helping others bring their gifts to a wider audience.

 

We are looking for members who have the ability or desire to:

  • Bring people together to learn about various topics
  • Create multi-cultural spaces/events where learning, connectivity and sharing can take place
  • Have experience in writing press releases and/or social media
  • Event planning/logistics experience

Key areas of team’s responsibility:

  • Planning and coordinating groups exchanges, community/learning events and LBTE quarterly gatherings
  • Identifying topics for workshops/learning events
  • Finding individuals to teach workshops and volunteers

What you’ll gain:

  • Event planning experience
  • The satisfaction of creating a learning space and seeing what connections are made there and beyond, including your own.

Time commitment: 4-8 hours per month spent representing LBTE at community events and meetings, or conducting outreach one-on-one’s.  Terms are 1 year with possible renewal.

To apply, click here to view and fill out the application.

 

Be a part in growing the time exchange! Become an Ambassador, Connector or Educator and share your voice, your vision, and your energy with our community!
If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact Micky Salatino:
lbtimeexchange@gmail.com
562-786-6081

Repair Cafe Results!

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  • Great collaborations with the LB Main Public Library, The Studio MakerSpace and Squeeze Art Collective!
  • Total of 63 repairs were worked on!
  • 13 volunteer experts/repairers plus 7 general volunteers, and 3 library staff!
  • Total volunteer hours: 88.75!

LB’s First Repair Café Reduced Waste, Built Connections

On May 14th, the Long Beach Time Exchange, Squeeze Art Collective, The Studio / Maker Space and the Long Beach Public Library held a successful first Repair Café!

13 volunteer repairers completed over 60 repairs on items including jewelry, electronics, clothes, and bikes.

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Here’s what participants had to say:

“Excellent! The volunteer repairman Rosendo was very helpful, nice and he spoke Spanish!”

“Coby fixed my CD player! I’m very happy! Christina was very helpful, as was Chris who epoxied my belt buckle! Yea!”

“This is really awesome! It’s great for a community to come together and help people out, impacting their community.”

“This was good: because we had an opportunity to bring our items to be repaired by people who we can trust.”

In addition to the repairers, the event was well staffed with volunteers earning time credits for their efforts. While the next Repair Café is not yet scheduled, the Time Exchange will inevitably host another, and plans to incorporate repair stations in its upcoming Summer Gathering on August 21st. Stay tuned for more details by following the LBTE event page or our Facebook.

Also, if you participated in the event and would like to offer any feedback, please click here.