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One of the more unique groups is called Womanshare, an informal bartering system founded three years ago [199*] by Manhattan residents Diana McCourt, a contractor, and Jane Wilson, a caterer.  Based on the theme "this is what friends and neighbors have always done for each other," Womanshare has eighty members who pay a yearly registration fee of $50.  Each hour of work is equivalent to one credit, no matter what the profession.

The diverse group includes lawyers, accountants, massage therapists, artists and carpenters who exchange "credits" with each other.  However, the twist is services that Ms. McCourt calls things that "money can't buy" are also available: having someone accompany you to a "scary" doctor's appointment, hiring someone to remove the clutter from your apartment, childcare, brainstorming, repairing lamps and other tasks not generally associate with being in an office.

"We have a lawyer who is just too tired at the end of the day to cook, so she hired someone to prepare her meals, and she picks up the food on her way home from her work," Ms. McCourt said.  "We try to emphasize life skills, such as teaching someone to play the guitar.  Finding time for fun things is just as important as anything else you must do in the work place."

Ms. McCourt sees the group as more than the exchanging of goods and services.  "It's become an important community-building tool," she said.  "Every month we run a potluck dinner for our members, and we've found that the sharing takes on many different forms.  People have become friends, they buddy up together to go to movies or take week-end trips.  This is beyond economics.  We're trying to remove ourselves from the traditional market economy.  In our society, caring and nurturing is not valued, and this group changes that."

Womanshare also conducts workshops on subjects like assertiveness training and financial planning and has offered assistance to other organizations who want to start a similar program.  Each member is required to donate six hours per month of administrative work.  Ms. McCourt said the most fun women have is when they do things in a group.  This also encourages members to use their credits for, as Ms. McCourt said, "Women are more accustomed to giving than receiving, and sometimes we have to remind them that they're entitled to use what they've earned."