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Imagine living on the fruits of your own labor. Being able, for instance, to trade a bag of cherries picked from your tree for a loaf of freshly baked bread and a jar of honey. Or bartering a pair of handmade earrings for a pound of zucchini and a bunch of basil. Imagine creating a gourmet meal without having to spend a dollar.
Impossible? Not if you frequent the Trader’s Co-op in Mount Shasta.
“At the Co-op, you can barter and trade handcrafted goods, homemade foods, garden produce, seeds and even sprouts,” said Leslie Ellorin, leader of the Co-op. “If you’ve made or grown it, you can bring it.”
“Bartering is more about satisfying needs than just using money to get what we want,” she said. “It’s really a way of life.
The Co-op is a social event, and it builds self esteem; people discover that what they grow or what they create has value.”
“Exchanges during the event teach people to appreciate the worth of their own goods and services,” Ellorin added. “They begin to look at homegrown food as real, to see that it’s as real as the food we get from the store. And to see that homemade items have intrinsic value, too.”
Although the Co-op meets only once a month, bartering is an on-going process. Participants can sign up on one of four lists used year round. One list is entitled, “Services for trade; the second is “Services Desired; the third is “Items for sale or trade,” and the fourth is “Free.”
“During our first Co-Op, in February 2009, those lists created a miracle,” Ellorin laughed. “A single mother traded fiddle lessons for transportation; for several months, both families came out ahead.”"
“There’s a lot going on in local food and sustainability,” Ellorin claims. “Mount Shasta is one of 150 Transition Towns in the world.”
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“Transition Towns are communities that are making the move to more sustainable way of living in food, transportation, and fuel. Actually, the Trader’s Co-op is just one of several action groups sponsored by Shasta Commons,” she said.
“Over 300 international communities participate in the Transition Town movement,” Sherry Ackerman of Shasta Commons, noted. “Two years ago, Mount Shasta became the 18th town to join, and there are now 90 Transition Towns through the US.”
“The movement offers resources and catalysts for building resilient communities that are able to withstand severe energy, climate or economic shocks while creating a better quality of life in the process,” she added. “Its mission is accomplished by inspiring, encouraging, supporting, networking and training individuals within communities to adopt, adapt, and implement approaches to community empowerment and change.”
Imagine living on the fruits of your own labor. Being able, for instance, to trade a bag of cherries picked from your tree for a loaf of freshly baked bread and a jar of honey. Or bartering a pair of handmade earrings for a pound of zucchini and a bunch of basil. Imagine creating a gourmet meal without having to spend a dollar.
Impossible? Not if you frequent the Trader’s Co-op in Mount Shasta.
“At the Co-op, you can barter and trade handcrafted goods, homemade foods, garden produce, seeds and even sprouts,” said Leslie Ellorin, leader of the Co-op. “If you’ve made or grown it, you can bring it.”
“Bartering is more about satisfying needs than just using money to get what we want,” she said. “It’s really a way of life.
The Co-op is a social event, and it builds self esteem; people discover that what they grow or what they create has value.”
“Exchanges during the event teach people to appreciate the worth of their own goods and services,” Ellorin added. “They begin to look at homegrown food as real, to see that it’s as real as the food we get from the store. And to see that homemade items have intrinsic value, too.”
Although the Co-op meets only once a month, bartering is an on-going process. Participants can sign up on one of four lists used year round. One list is entitled, “Services for trade; the second is “Services Desired; the third is “Items for sale or trade,” and the fourth is “Free.”
“During our first Co-Op, in February 2009, those lists created a miracle,” Ellorin laughed. “A single mother traded fiddle lessons for transportation; for several months, both families came out ahead.”"
“There’s a lot going on in local food and sustainability,” Ellorin claims. “Mount Shasta is one of 150 Transition Towns in the world.”
"
“Transition Towns are communities that are making the move to more sustainable way of living in food, transportation, and fuel. Actually, the Trader’s Co-op is just one of several action groups sponsored by Shasta Commons,” she said.
“Over 300 international communities participate in the Transition Town movement,” Sherry Ackerman of Shasta Commons, noted. “Two years ago, Mount Shasta became the 18th town to join, and there are now 90 Transition Towns through the US.”
“The movement offers resources and catalysts for building resilient communities that are able to withstand severe energy, climate or economic shocks while creating a better quality of life in the process,” she added. “Its mission is accomplished by inspiring, encouraging, supporting, networking and training individuals within communities to adopt, adapt, and implement approaches to community empowerment and change.”
“We’re operating under the fiscal sponsorship of the Mt. Shasta Ecology Center,” Touson Saryon, a Shasta Commons founder, said. “We’ve been working on various aspects of local sustainability through action groups and networking with talented people in the community.”
Some of the Action Groups already open for participation include local currency, garden shares, the Trader’s Co-op, neighborhood fruit harvests, seed saving, food storage, bee keeping, and elder care, according to Saryon and Ackerman.
“Participation in one of these groups offers a really great opportunity for networking with others who are interested in local resiliency and sustainable living,” Ackerman added.
Ellorin encourages those curious about exploring bartering as a way of life to attend the first monthly July 3rd event. “We don’t want commercial items of any type,” she emphasized. “People need to bring what they’ve grown or made.”
“Sometimes, of course, people don’t have anything tangible to barter,” Ellorin said. “So this year we’re trying something new; it’ called the Hours Currency.”
“Those who come with nothing to trade but who want to be involved, are issued one of the currencies. They look like a check – essentially they’re trading their time for something they want,” she added.
“For instance, I just reviewed a tax return in exchange for a dinner that was served to my family. Everyone was happy; he brought a full meal to our front door. I’ve also traded a massage in exchange for teaching how to make a craft,” Ellorin smiled.
“We all trade with Atara, who lets us use a wonderful room in A Melo Place. She provides the space, the advertising, a bathroom, and we put out a basket. Each trader puts something into the basket.”
“I’ve received the most beautiful pieces of art,” Melo smiled. “And I love seeing what people bring to trade.”
The next Trader’s Co-op will be held at A Melo Place, 412 South Mt. Shasta Boulevard from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday July 3.
To learn more about the Co-op, call 926-6836. For more information on Shasta Commons and Transition Town action groups and activities, visit the website www.shastacommons.org
