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TwitThisCar nut Mark Clements, 53, had shaggy hair. Laura Shira, 43, who gives haircuts, needed car repairs. Rather than paying for service, the two Stillwater, Minn., (pop. 16,000) area residents helped each other.
A typical small-town favor, right? No, the two didn't know each other. They belonged to the Neighborhood Service Exchange (NSE), where members trade their skills. The exchange need not be direct; members earn credit for hours served and can cash in later from anyone in the group.
The NSE may help folks save a little money, but at its heart it's building a sense of community in a place that was losing that small-town feel. In a recent Stillwater survey, 78% said they didn't feel comfortable asking a neighbor for help. "We want neighbors to feel like neighbors again," says Kathryn Myron, who founded the group in 1998.
It's working. Haidi Hanson, 53, agreed to make "friendly phone calls" to Katie O'Brien, 66, who had suffered a stroke. The two became fast friends who now talk on the phone almost daily. "I don't even bother to keep track of my credits anymore," says O'Brien.
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