Darcy Pauls of Niverville has come up with a way to pay forward some of the blessings in his life. Specifically, he has launched an initiative called AoS Trailers—AoS meaning “Acts of Service”—a platform which will allow him to lend his collection of trailers to those who need them, at no charge.

Pauls owns three trailers: a snowmobile trailer that is two sleds wide, a single-axle cargo trailer, and a dual-axle utility trailer.

But despite serving important uses, these trailers sit on his property unused for most of the year. That’s something he would like to change.

He envisions many ways in which the trailers can be used to help others, whether it be helping someone move, cleaning up a yard, picking up firewood, or taking donations to the local foodbank or homeless shelter.

“We are all short on time,” he says. “And many jobs can be done without trailers. But if having a trailer gets the job done faster… I will have achieved my goal.”

The idea aligns well with the way Pauls says he has tried to live his life, striving to go about his days with “open hands.”

When lending one of these sleds, he has just a few common sense ground rules. Naturally, the user needs to have a valid license and an appropriate vehicle to pull the trailer. And he requires the load to be legal and properly secured.

Pauls would also like to know what the trailer will be used for and ensure that it will remain relatively local.

Of course, he hopes people won’t be offended if he doesn’t have an appropriate trailer or timeslot available for them precisely at the time of their need.

“I’m not doing this to compete with trailer rental companies,” he points out. “Renting a trailer from a trailer rental company is what I would expect if your project is for financial profit.”

This idea, Pauls hopes, is just the beginning of a great thing.

“When I was lying awake at night—that happens often when you get old—I had visions of the community of Niverville creating a database of tools and trailers that they are willing to use to help others,” Pauls says. “There certainly is a need for storage companies and we see several of them opening up in Niverville. That’s great. They provide a valuable service. But as I drive by them, I wonder how many tools and resources are sitting in there that aren’t benefiting anyone. What if there was a complex where individuals were willing to have things available to bless others and a sign-out procedure that helped ensure they came back? But [maybe also] a heart of gratitude from those who made the items available, so they didn’t get ‘bent out of shape’ if something happened.”

Pauls also envisions having a bank of trailers available in Niverville to help newcomers to town. He ponders, for example, having local realtors let new property owners know that a group of people is willing to welcome them and assist with their move.

Churches, too, could get on board with his project, he speculates. This initiative could be an opportunity for people to show love to their neighbours.

“The value isn’t in the trailers,” he says. “It’s in the people who are willing to give of their time and use a trailer as a means to interact with people.”

Pauls is grateful to the people who have helped him with this concept. He first ran the idea of AoS Trailers by people he trusts and respects. One of the people with whom Pauls shared his concept then passed the idea on to a friend of his in Minnesota, who then launched a trailer-lending program of his own.

Knowing that his idea is already in action somewhere else has only confirmed for Pauls that the plan is viable.

Pauls wants to make certain that people understand this isn’t about him.

“This is about how God has blessed us,” he adds. “And it’s about how as a community we can use what we have to show love to others.”