Would you like to join our group?  It's free and open to all adult residents of the Reading / Berks County area!

Thanks for the interest you have shown in our group - membership in this group is totally free and is a privilege which is generally open to the entire adult public in the Reading area.

Please read these few paragraphs explaining how to join the group - it's really very simple but you must follow the steps correctly.

Yahoo does not give groups much room on their Home Pages for notes, comments, instructions, etc.  Plus their "Join This Group" page has content and formatting problems that we have absolutely no control over.  We would make a lot of changes on that page if we could (so that the "Join" process would be a lot simpler), but Yahoo won't let anyone change anything on the  "Join" page.  So the very next best thing we can do is provide this tutorial for you.

WARNING:  when you apply to join the group, MAKE SURE YOU USE A GOOD EMAIL ADDRESS!  Do NOT try to join our group with the email address that Yahoo automatically gives everyone (unless you actually use that Yahoo email address).

After you have submitted your request to "Join" our group, Yahoo will send you a confirmation email that you MUST reply to.  If you do not get the confirmation email (because you tried to join the group with an email address that you don't use), you will be unable to reply to the email - and you will NOT be able to join our group!

At the bottom of the page you are reading now, you will find a link back to our Yahoo Home Page, and on that page, on the right side a few inches from the top of the page, you will find a blue "Join This Group" button. Click on that button and fill in the blanks on the new page. Near the bottom of the "Join" page is a box with the heading "Comments To Owner" - in this box we need you to tell us your name (first name is all we need), your town and zip code, and then tell us how you heard about our Freecycle group.

WARNING:  Even though they give you lots of room to type, and they don't warn you that your are typing too much, Yahoo only allows you to type 200 characters (they don't tell you this in advance), so be brief or you will get an error message.

Soon after you have completed the form on the "Join This Group" page, Yahoo will notify the moderators of the group that you have requested to join the group. One of the moderators will then send you a Verification request that you MUST respond to - you MUST reply! Here is the basic information that is covered in the Verification request:

Requirement #1: Valid email address (already covered above)

Requirement #2: New members must live in this general area (Reading, Berks County, etc).

Requirement #3: New members have read our rules and policies and promise to post according to our rules and formats.

That's it - those are the 3 requirements...sounds a lot worse than it really is. There is no test on our rules, but the important things that we expect you to understand are what items are prohibited in an OFFER post, and what you can't ask for in a WANTED post.

We would also like to know how you heard about Freecycle and the ReadingFreecycle group. Did you hear about the Freecycle groups in general (or specifically about the ReadingFreecycle group) on TV or radio or newspapers, or from a friend or a relative, or perhaps you were just surfing the Internet?

So when you "Reply" to the Verification email we will be sending you, fill in the blanks at the bottom of the page: first name, town and zip code, and then tell us you read the rules, and tell us how you heard about our Reading Freecycle group.

Here are a few examples of Replies to the Verification Email (one simple sentence is all that is necessary):

"My name is Mary and I live in Kenhorst 19607. I have read and understand the rules and the required posting formats. I read about ReadingFreecycle in an article in the Reading Eagle."
or
"My name is John and I live in Laureldale 19605. I have read and understand the rules and the required posting formats. A guy at work told me about Freecycle."
or
"I'm Joan from Wyomissing 19610. I've read the rules and the posting format requirements. My sister is a member of ReadingFreecycle."

After you "Reply" to the Verification email, depending on Moderator availability, it could be just a few minutes or a few hours before your membership request is approved.

Yahoo will send you an automated "Congratulations" email after we have approved your request to join our group.

Here's a link to our Reading Freecycle Group's Rules and policies (it's in our "reference library" website):

Our Group's Rule and Policies

Here's a link to our Yahoo home page - to join our group, click on the blue "Join This Group" button on the right side of the screen:

Reading Freecycle Yahoo Home Page

If you would like to speak out on a particular subject, send an email to us and we may include your letter on this "We Get Letters" page.

readingfreecycle@gmail.com