Community Hub Guide
How to use the Onion Creek Community Hub
This guide explains what you can do on the site, where to find things, and how each community tool helps neighbors, visitors, businesses, families, volunteers, and property owners.
Start here
The Community Hub is a shared local resource for Onion Creek. Use it to find events, post local listings, report lost pets, discover businesses, learn about wildfire readiness, follow community projects, support local fundraising, document land history, and share helpful information with neighbors.
Start Here
Overview
A plain-English guide to everything the Onion Creek Community Hub can help with. Start here when you are new, looking for a tool, or trying to figure out where something belongs.
Who this is for
New residents, longtime neighbors, visitors, local businesses, volunteers, families, and property owners.
What you can do here
- Search the guide by topic or need
- Find the right page or form without guessing
- Learn what each community tool is for
- Discover features you may not know exist
- Share ideas or corrections when something is missing
Common uses
- The guide is written for residents and visitors, not developers.
- The Community Hub is still growing, so new sections and features may be added over time.
Where to go
Community Life
Overview
Community Life helps the site feel alive by highlighting neighbors, updates, birthdays, new members, announcements, and local activity.
Who this is for
Neighbors who want to stay connected and feel part of what is happening locally.
What you can do here
- Create a community profile
- Browse the member directory
- See new member welcomes
- Celebrate birthday shoutouts when members choose to participate
- Follow community announcements and updates
- Discover community helpers and neighbors with shared interests
Common uses
- Birthday and member information should always respect privacy settings.
- New member shoutouts can help neighbors feel welcome instead of lost in a Facebook thread.
Where to go
Community Events
Overview
The event calendar keeps local meetings, fundraisers, celebrations, garage sales, community gatherings, school activities, and other happenings in one place.
Who this is for
Anyone who wants to know what is happening around Onion Creek or wants to share an event with neighbors.
What you can do here
- Browse upcoming events on the community calendar
- Submit an event or flyer for review
- Share fundraisers, meetings, garage sales, and local activities
- Help neighbors find events without digging through old posts
Common uses
- Use the calendar for anything neighbors would reasonably want to know about.
- Submit Event opens a form so people can share details without leaving the guide.
Where to go
Swap & Shop Marketplace
Overview
Swap & Shop is more than classifieds. Neighbors can buy, sell, trade, give away items, promote vendor products, share payment links, and support community projects through their sales.
Who this is for
Neighbors, vendors, makers, farms, garage sale hosts, cottage food businesses, and anyone who wants to keep buying and selling local.
What you can do here
- Post items for sale, trade, wanted, or free
- Create vendor-style listings with Cash App, Venmo, PayPal, Stripe, or other payment links
- Use listings as a simple mini POS or mobile sales page at markets and events
- Share listings with QR codes
- Pledge a fixed dollar amount or percentage of sales toward a community project
- Show community pledges publicly so buyers know what their purchase supports
Common uses
- A seller can use a listing like a tiny storefront by adding photos, details, contact info, and payment links.
- Community pledges can turn ordinary sales into support for road maintenance, Firewise work, youth activities, or other local projects.
Where to go
Community Shop & Product Pledges
Overview
The Community Shop can sell fundraiser items, local merchandise, community products, and campaign items. Products can show a public dollar or percentage pledge toward a project or cause.
Who this is for
Community groups, fundraisers, local sellers, school groups, project organizers, and shoppers who want purchases to support something local.
What you can do here
- Sell community items through the shop
- Add a fixed dollar pledge to a product
- Add a percentage pledge to a product
- Show pledge details publicly on product pages
- Use products for fundraisers, project support, or local campaigns
Common uses
- Public pledge labels help shoppers understand exactly what their purchase supports.
- This can be useful for shirts, fundraiser items, seasonal products, or project-specific campaigns.
Where to go
Community Projects & Fundraising
Overview
Community Projects helps neighbors organize improvement ideas, collect contributions, recruit volunteers, post updates, and document progress. It can act like a local community-funded project board without the extra crowdfunding platform feel.
Who this is for
Neighbors, road groups, volunteers, project organizers, Firewise helpers, local groups, and anyone trying to coordinate a shared community need.
What you can do here
- Create projects for road maintenance, gravel, cleanup, Firewise work, trail work, repairs, or community improvements
- Add Venmo, Cash App, PayPal, Stripe Connect, or other contribution links
- Collect direct donations or contributions for a project
- Show goals, updates, photos, progress, and volunteer needs
- Connect marketplace or shop pledges to a project
- Use it like a local community GoFundMe without sending neighbors to a separate platform
Common uses
- This is especially useful for neighbors who already collect road or gravel contributions and need one easy place to explain the need.
- Project pages can show what has been done, what is needed next, and how people can help.
Where to go
Lost Pets, Found Items & Sightings
Overview
Lost & Found helps neighbors quickly share lost pets, found pets, missing livestock, found property, wildlife sightings, and other community sightings.
Who this is for
Pet owners, animal lovers, livestock owners, and neighbors who spot something important.
What you can do here
- Report a lost pet
- Report a found pet
- Report missing livestock
- Post found property or items
- Report a sighting
- Create a printable lost pet flyer
- Share updates when the animal or item is found
Common uses
- The flyer generator is one of the most useful hidden features because it can turn a report into something printable and shareable fast.
- Sightings can be useful for pets, livestock, wildlife, safety concerns, and general community awareness.
Where to go
Youth Connection
Overview
Youth Connection helps families find activities, programs, volunteer opportunities, school-related information, clubs, sports, and resources for kids and teens.
Who this is for
Families, parents, youth groups, schools, clubs, libraries, churches, sports groups, and teen volunteers.
What you can do here
- Find youth and family activities
- Share programs like 4-H, Scouts, sports, library activities, clubs, or school events
- Promote teen volunteer opportunities
- Help families discover safe local things to do
- Connect youth activities with events and community projects
Common uses
- Youth Connection should be easy for parents to skim and easy for organizations to submit to.
- Teen volunteer opportunities can connect with Community Projects when extra help is needed.
Where to go
Community Maps
Overview
The map tools help people see local businesses, farm stands, projects, listings, watch reports, resources, and points of interest in a visual way.
Who this is for
Neighbors, visitors, businesses, volunteers, project organizers, and anyone trying to find something local.
What you can do here
- Explore the main Community Map
- Use the Community Watch Map for local reports and awareness
- Find farm stands, businesses, services, property listings, and project locations
- Submit or update map locations
- Use future layers for live vendors, delivery, road info, or local resources
Common uses
- The Community Watch Map should use Google Maps and focus closely enough on Onion Creek that people can actually recognize the area.
- A future layered map could let people toggle businesses, farm stands, projects, Firewise items, lost pets, and local services.
Where to go
Local Businesses & Services
Overview
The business directory helps residents and visitors find local businesses, makers, farms, farm stands, contractors, services, organizations, and community resources.
Who this is for
Residents, visitors, business owners, vendors, farms, contractors, and local organizations.
What you can do here
- Find local services and businesses
- Add a business, farm stand, organization, or resource
- Promote contact details, service areas, photos, and descriptions
- Connect businesses to maps, marketplace listings, events, and community pledges
Common uses
- Business listings can help people shop local before looking outside the area.
- Vendor and business profiles can connect naturally with marketplace listings and community project support.
Where to go
Land Vault
Overview
Land Vault is a place to preserve the story of a property over time. It can document gardens, wildlife, trees, improvements, receipts, photos, memories, documents, and stewardship work.
Who this is for
Homeowners, homesteaders, gardeners, forest landowners, farms, families, landlords, tenants, and anyone who wants better records for their property.
What you can do here
- Track planting history and garden notes
- Save annual photos and property memories
- Record wildlife sightings and tree information
- Store receipts, documents, and improvement records
- Document stewardship projects, repairs, and changes over time
- Preserve property history for future owners or family members
Common uses
- Land Vault is not just for grants. Its main value is keeping the history of land from disappearing.
- It could also help landlords and tenants keep shared property notes in one organized place.
Where to go
Firewise & Wildfire Readiness
Overview
Wildfire readiness tools help neighbors learn about preparedness, Firewise work, assessments, local projects, and ways to make homes and properties more resilient.
Who this is for
Residents, landowners, volunteers, Firewise organizers, emergency preparedness groups, and anyone concerned about wildfire risk.
What you can do here
- Find wildfire preparedness resources
- Learn about Firewise efforts
- Follow local mitigation projects
- Connect with assessment information
- Track community participation and progress
- Share resources with neighbors
Common uses
- The hub can help show participation, project progress, and community engagement, which is useful for organizing work and telling the story of what has already been done.
- Firewise information works best when it is simple, local, and easy to act on.
Where to go
Help Board, Volunteers & Town Runs
Overview
The Help Board gives neighbors a place to request help, offer help, coordinate rides or town runs, and connect community needs with people willing to lend a hand.
Who this is for
Neighbors who need help, neighbors who can help, volunteers, drivers, and local community helpers.
What you can do here
- Request help from neighbors
- Offer help or volunteer
- Coordinate town runs or local rides
- Connect helpers with community projects
- Share practical needs without creating a long comment thread
Common uses
- This works well for small practical needs like picking something up in town, finding a ride, or asking who can help with a local project.
- Clear categories make it easier for helpers to know what is actually needed.
Where to go
Community Impact & Funding Support
Overview
The Community Hub can help Onion Creek show engagement, organize projects, collect local contributions, document progress, and tell a stronger story when seeking sponsors, partners, donations, or funding.
Who this is for
Project organizers, community groups, volunteers, potential sponsors, funders, and neighbors who want to see progress.
What you can do here
- Show active projects and completed work
- Document volunteer interest and participation
- Track donations or contribution links on projects
- Show community pledges from marketplace and shop sales
- Use maps, photos, updates, and timelines to demonstrate momentum
- Collect comments, ideas, and public support
Common uses
- The site cannot guarantee funding, but it can help prove that the community is organized, engaged, and able to communicate progress.
- That kind of documentation is useful for grant readiness, sponsors, local campaigns, and community planning.
