The city's got a new program to encourage volunteerism – and this one allows charitable givers to put some time in the bank.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg first introduced NYC Service – the office that oversees more than 38 innovative initiatives that aim to improve the city through service and volunteerism –in April 2009. Now the office has a new component – a Time Bank that enables volunteers to give an hour of their time and get an hour in return.
The program gives a new meaning to the old adage "do unto others."
Are you a great French teacher who wants to learn to cook some French cuisine? No problem.
Volunteer an hour of your time to teach French and then you get a "time dollar" to spend on receiving services from another participant in the program.
The goal is to invite New Yorkers to create profiles on NYCService.org by describing their interests, skills and passions and their location and then connect them with people searching for those services – and vice versa.
About 80 members have signed up in the last few months, but the city expects volunteers won't be able to start cashing in their "time dollars" until the spring, according to the Daily News.
"New Yorkers have so much to offer and they really have the desire to help," Diahann Billings-Burford, who runs NYC Service, told the paper.
Want to learn more? Check out NYC Service and learn how you can help -- and be helped in return!
