# Timebank Hour Tracker for Skill Swaps ## The Problem Neighbors have skills they'd happily share — plumbing, tutoring, gardening, tech help — but no easy way to find each other or track fair exchanges. Traditional bartering is awkward ("Is my haircut worth your tax help?") and cash-based services exclude people on tight budgets. Communities need a simple system where everyone's hour is worth the same, building trust and connection while getting real help done. ## Who Uses It **Maria, 67, retired teacher** — Has time and loves helping kids with homework, but needs help with her overgrown yard and can't afford landscapers. Wants to contribute without feeling like a charity case. **Derek, 34, freelance web developer** — Works from home, knows nobody on his block. Happy to fix neighbors' wifi issues in exchange for someone teaching him to cook real meals instead of ordering DoorDash. **Jasmine, 22, nursing student** — Broke but has a car. Would drive elderly neighbors to appointments in exchange for someone watching her dog during clinicals. **The Neighborhood Association Coordinator** — Wants to track overall community activity, celebrate milestones ("Our block has exchanged 500 hours!"), and identify members who might need encouragement. ## Core Features 1. **Skill Board with Offers & Requests** — Members post skills they'll share ("I can hem pants, basic sewing repairs") and help they need ("Looking for someone to teach me basic Excel"). Each post includes estimated time, availability windows, and whether they can travel or need someone to come to them. 2. **Hour Ledger with Two-Party Confirmation** — When Maria tutors Derek's kid for 2 hours, both confirm the exchange. Maria's balance goes +2, Derek's goes -2. Simple running totals visible on each profile. No complicated escrow — just transparent accounting. 3. **Negative Balance Grace Period** — New members can go up to -5 hours before they must give back. This lets people in crisis get help first, ask questions later. Configurable per community. 4. **Exchange History Feed** — Public (anonymized) feed showing recent swaps: "A member traded 1.5 hours of bike repair for 1.5 hours of resume review." Builds social proof and inspires ideas without exposing private details. 5. **Skill Matchmaker** — Type what you need, see who offers it nearby. Type what you offer, see who's requesting it. Simple keyword search plus category browse (Home Repair, Tech Help, Transportation, Lessons, Errands, Creative). 6. **Ody-Powered Swap Suggestions** — Stuck on what to offer? Describe your situation and Ody suggests skills you might not realize are valuable ("You mentioned you speak Tagalog — three neighbors are looking for language practice!"). 7. **Local Resource Bridge** — When a job is too big for timebank (rewiring a whole house), surface relevant licensed professionals from WellSpr.ing's business directory. When someone needs supplies, check for free items available locally first. ## WellSpr.ing Integration Points ### MCP Tools (via POST to `https://wellspr.ing/mcp`, JSON-RPC 2.0) **`get_businesses`** — When a timebank request exceeds DIY scope ("I need a full kitchen remodel"), query for licensed local contractors. Display as "For bigger jobs, consider these local pros" with a clear distinction from peer exchanges. **`get_free_items`** — Before someone spends hours earning credits to buy supplies, check what's available free. "Need lumber for your fence project? A neighbor has scrap wood available." Link directly to pickup info. **`ask_ody`** — Three integration points: - *New member onboarding*: "I'm retired and not sure what skills I have to offer" → Ody suggests based on work history, hobbies - *Fair exchange questions*: "Is it fair to trade 1 hour of legal advice for 1 hour of lawn mowing?" → Ody explains timebank philosophy (all hours equal) while acknowledging the question - *Stuck matches*: "Nobody seems to need what I offer" → Ody suggests reframing skills or alternative contributions **`get_civic_ideas`** — Surface other community projects members might join. Someone active in timebank probably cares about mutual aid and might want to help with related civic efforts. **`search_civic_services`** — When needs exceed what neighbors can provide (someone needs housing assistance, food bank info), bridge to official services rather than leaving them stuck. ### REST Endpoints **`GET https://wellspr.ing/api/geo/portals?area_code=NNN`** — On setup, help communities understand their geographic scope. Could enable future federation between neighborhood timebanks. ### Future: Covenant Commerce (Roadmap — not yet live) When WellSpr.ing's merchant and payment rail features launch, timebanks could optionally let members: - Convert hour credits to discounts at participating local businesses - Accept partial-hour-partial-dollar payments for bigger jobs - Bridge between adjacent community timebanks *Do not build against these — they don't exist yet. Note them as aspirational.* ## Data Model ### Members ``` id, display_name, email_hash, neighborhood_slug, hour_balance (decimal, can be negative), joined_at, last_active_at, bio_text ``` ### Skills ``` id, member_id, skill_type (OFFER | REQUEST), title, description, category_slug, estimated_hours, can_travel (boolean), availability_notes, is_active (boolean), created_at ``` ### Exchanges ``` id, provider_member_id, receiver_member_id, skill_id (optional reference), description, hours (decimal), provider_confirmed_at, receiver_confirmed_at, completed_at, notes ``` ### Categories ``` slug, display_name, icon, sort_order ``` *Seed with: home-repair, tech-help, transportation, lessons-tutoring, errands, creative, yard-garden, childcare-pets, administrative, wellness* ## Vibe Coding Prompt to Get Started Paste this into Claude or Replit Agent: --- **Build a Timebank Hour Tracker web app with these specs:** **Tech Stack:** React frontend + Express.js backend on Replit, SQLite database (easy single-file persistence), Tailwind CSS for styling. **First Milestone — Member Profiles & Skill Board (aim for working in 2-3 hours):** 1. Create a simple member registration: display name, email, neighborhood dropdown, short bio. Store in SQLite `members` table with auto-generated ID and starting `hour_balance` of 0. 2. Build a "Post a Skill" form with fields: title, description, category (dropdown with 10 options: Home Repair, Tech Help, Transportation, Lessons, Errands, Creative, Yard & Garden, Childcare & Pets, Administrative, Wellness), estimated hours, "I can travel" checkbox, skill type radio (I'm Offering / I'm Requesting). 3. Create a Skill Board page showing all active skills in a card grid. Each card shows: title, category badge, member's display name, estimated hours, offer/request label. Add a search box that filters by title/description keywords. Add category filter tabs. 4. Member profile page showing: their bio, hour balance (show as "+3 hours" or "-2 hours" with appropriate green/red coloring), list of their posted skills, and their exchange history. **Database Schema to Start:** ```sql CREATE TABLE members ( id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT, display_name TEXT NOT NULL, email_hash