On the first zero degree morning of a Berkshire winter you bundle up – hats, gloves, coat, boots – and tromp out to your car. Visions of warm summer mornings come to mind as you chip ice from the car door. How those mornings brought effortless starts, something you have come to expect. This morning is different. Tingling fingertips and your breath condensing on the windshield as you speak encouraging words to a frozen engine foretell the coming problem. A key turn brings the persistent and familiar chug of a winter start. That is it. No turning, no fire, and no drive to work.
It is time to phone a mechanic. As you trudge dejectedly back to the front door you take one more frustrated, accusing glance at the object of your anguish. You see the BerkShares bumper sticker reminding you of the possibilities. Those BerkShares in your pocket won't be paying for dinner tonight, but instead will be used to get you back on the road and back earning more BerkShares. On the web (www.berkshares.org) or from your wallet you pull out the list of businesses accepting BerkShares. Apex Automotive, Autobahn, and Pete's Sales and Service all offer the service you need and the commitment to community expected from businesses accepting BerkShares.
Local auto mechanics, in this case, for southern Berkshire County, generate a loyal following. With commitment to a mechanic comes, it would seem, a commitment to community. Pete Batacchi of Pete's Sales and Service, Bob and Jane Holcomb of Apex Automotive, and Dominic Lyndon of Autobahn all found that their consistent customers were inquiring about BerkShares. Holcomb specifically stated that he signed on because the program "fit his customer base."
Transportation is vital to the local economy of the southern Berkshires. From getting local produce to market, to paying your bills in BerkShares, a vehicle is a necessity. Local mechanics participating in the BerkShares program are demonstrating that local economy goes beyond fresh produce and handmade crafts. Most businesses in the southern Berkshires depend on automobiles for the functioning of their businesses, making reliable, trustworthy repair service invaluable. Our service industry keeps the other aspects of our economy functioning.
The automotive repair industry requires inputs that make it impossible to purchase locally. Required parts are brought in from all over the world. What is local in this industry is labor; the people doing the repairs. While Lyndon might not be able to use BerkShares for purchasing all the parts necessary to replace the brakes of the Audi wagon sitting on the lift in his garage, he can purchase his food, clothes and other necessities.
With the high level of outside purchasing required by auto repair, it might be expected that these mechanics would need to exchange their incoming BerkShares for federal dollars. On the contrary, the Holcombs, Batacchi, and Lyndon, have yet to exchange a single BerkShare. The Holcombs even braved this year's Valentine's Day storm to enjoy dinner at Route 7 Grill specifically because they accept BerkShares. "There is a bit of everything," Batacchi says as he picks businesses off the wallet guide where he will spend the BerkShares he has been saving since he signed up in January.
From a group of people talking outside the inspection bay at Pete's Sales and Service, to vacation conversations in the waiting room at Apex, to a family dropping by at Autobahn to inquire about the soundness of a used Volkswagen they saw in the paper, auto repair shops bring people together in unexpected ways. These face-to-face interactions and the service provided to community members make auto repair shops and BerkShares a perfect fit.
You can get your oil changed, have those cold weather repairs done, or join an impromptu conversation at Apex Automotive, Autobahn, and Pete's Sales and Service. Just be sure to bring your BerkShares.
Michael Gordon
for the BerkShares Team
PO Box 125
Great Barrington, MA 01230
(413) 528-1737
info@berkshares.org
www.berkshares.org
Board of Directors: Asa Hardcastle, Louann Harvey, Jennifer Sahn, David Lazan, Art Ames, Alan Glackman, Susan Ingersoll, and Christopher Lindstrom.
