Report from Community Meeting March 27, 2022

Dear Friends and Neighbors, 

 A big thank you to all the folks who have recently signed-up for our newsletter or taken the community survey. Welcome! Thanks! 

We had a great in-person community meeting in March and wanted to share the outcomes and feedback we received. First off, many thanks to everyone who attended and to St. Peter’s Lutheran Church for hosting us. 

Most of the meeting was spent discussing and workshopping a statement about the co-op vision and values collectively written by members of the steering committee. 

Attendees felt enthusiastic about ideas like: 

• Valuing people and community well-being over profits, Supporting local agriculture and producers, 

• A store that is a community hub, 

• The described offerings, especially bulk and local foods and less plastic packaging, 

• Emphasis on affordability, accessibility, and care for the environment. 

 And suggestions were made for changes and clearer wording about: 

Member-ownership and who will be able shop, More welcoming language for non-members, More emphasis on support for local farms, Clearer focus on accessibility and affordability. 

We consider anything written about values, mission, and vision to be a work in progress, largely because it depends on ongoing community input. If you weren’t at the meeting and want to give feedback, please head over to the website and let us know what you think. 

Read Our Vision and Values  

Many attendees also asked for concise talking points about the virtues and benefits of a food co-op they could use spreading the news to friends and neighbors. We are working on those now, and they will be available in our next newsletter and on the website soon. 

Many thanks, Diana 

For the Steering Committee