It’s been a huge week at our little campaign office. With your support and a little competitive spirit, we have raised $400,000. We met both of last week’s challenges – our $10k matching goal and the $50k for 300. Thank you, thank you to the generous owners who provided these opportunities, and each owner who invested last week to make them an actuality. We’re truly making this happen together. The great news is, we’re not done yet! We have several weeks and several hundreds of thousands to go. Think of the satisfaction in reaching those milestones!
So, why are folks investing? This is what we’re hearing, “…we want to support our local farmers”, and “I want access to fresh local foods in the village everyday”, or “co-ops are good businesses – for communities and for owners.”
And that’s not just fluffy stuff. A survey of co-ops across the country found that co-ops, on average, stock 20% local foods (versus 6% at conventional grocery stores), devote 13% of profits to charities (conventional stores: 4%), and 82% of produce sales are organic (conventional stores: just 12%). Co-ops also pay employees higher wages and recycle significantly more cardboard, plastics and food waste. (Read more about how awesome co-ops are
here.) A co-op in the Southtowns won’t just fill a grocery void, it is already building a strong community of people who can create a reality that meets their needs.
So, don’t stop the progress! Your investment is important – our $400,000 is made up of large and small investments – and we couldn’t have reached this point without each and every one. With your support, we can continue, but it’s only with your support that we can be successful.
The investments options are sound, the process is easy, our volunteers are mega friendly and the opportunities our co-op offers are endless. Fresh foods. Fantastic fair trade coffee. Lunch on the patio. Classes. Stickers for your kids. Co-ops are powerful because they are whatever their owners create them to be. So follow the steps below and help create yours today.
