What is the Charlotte Community ToolBank?
The Charlotte Community ToolBank is a non-profit tool lending program that serves charitable organizations in our community by putting high-quality tools in the hands of the volunteers who are painting schools, repairing seniors’ roofs, landscaping public spaces, and more, guaranteeing that every volunteer is equipped with the tools they need to get the job done.
Who uses the Charlotte ToolBank?
ToolBank tools are only available to charitable organizations, such as:
- Tax exempt organizations
- Schools and PTAs/PTOs
- Neighborhood associations
- Faith-based groups
- Civic organizations
- Government agencies
- And other charitable organizations
Currently, the ToolBank serves over 150 charitable organizations in the Charlotte area, providing them access to a massive inventory of over 140 different types of high-quality tools in volumes large enough to equip thousands of volunteers at a time.
How does an agency borrow tools from the ToolBank?
Charitable groups must first join the ToolBank as member agencies. This process captures documentation of their charitable status and creates a user account for agencies to check out tools via our online tool ordering system. It’s free to join the ToolBank and it takes only minutes to complete our online membership application.
Once an agency has completed the membership application process, they can then check out tools in one-week increments for up to eight weeks at a time for a small handling fee equivalent to 3% of the tool retail value. For instance, an agency would only pay $30 to borrow $1,000 worth of tools for a week. A shovel, for example, has a tool handling fee of $0.30 per week.
What are the benefits of using the ToolBank?
The ToolBank provides charitable organizations with year-round access to a massive inventory of tools for a nominal fee. The ToolBank makes it convenient and inexpensive for organizations to equip their volunteers.
How does the Charlotte ToolBank impact the community?
The Charlotte Community ToolBank is a resource to charitable organizations - a sector that typically faces a scarcity of resources. We provide tools for next to nothing to enhance the charitable sector’s capacity to serve, facilitating hands-on volunteerism in the greater Charlotte area and empowering volunteer groups to perform larger, more ambitious, and more frequent service projects.
Charlotte Impact 2012
- Number of projects equipped: 446
- Number of volunteers equipped: 11,127
- Number of charitable agencies served: 153
- Value of tools and equipment borrowed: $279,570
- Cost to charitable agencies: $8,392