Hello members and friends. As you know, members of the Dill Pickle Food Co-op are also owners and as member/owners you have a say in how the Co-op is run. Recently we got some feedback from members that we needed to do a better job of keeping you informed of our activities. Well, when you speak we listen. One of the ways we are addressing this concern is by creating a weekly digest of what’s been going on. We hope that by publishing this digest you will feel more connected to the Co-op and that it will be easier for you to find ways to help when you have time on your hands. Your opinion counts so please continue to give us feedback. If you are not a member yet, now is the time to join. Check out the membership page of our website click here for more details
The following is a summary of all the postings from our Dill Pickle Food Co-op organizer’s Yahoo group called gogocoop. If you want to become a member of this mailing list then please visit gogocoop Board Meeting On Monday, June 11 we had a Board meeting at the Wicker Park Public Library. Our agenda was as follows: Logan Square Farmer's Market report Discuss Julia's write up of our membership requirements Questions Jen and Stephen should try to ask at CCMA conference Board member recruitment Jen's Store Vision write-up Banner design Status update from Finance committee Update Kath's list of monthly goals Tech Committee Description Discussing the idea of hiring a General Manager Reviewing the new flier Fullerton Location We did not reach quorum for the board meeting so our June Board meeting was scheduled for Tuesday, June 26 at 6:30pm at the Wicker Park Library. The meeting is open to the public. Newsletter Madeline Fan and a new volunteer Rebecca are working on creating a member newsletter. It will include a summary of Coop business to date as well as relevant articles and announcements. It will be distributed to members in August. An online version will also be available. Vision of the Store In May the Coop hosted a Visioning meeting in which we brainstormed our ideas about what the Coop store will look like once it’s opened. Kathleen Duffy took notes and posted them on the gogocoop Yahoo group. Jen Cozad wrote a narrative of the vision of the store based on those notes. It is also posted on gogocoop and it will appear in the member newsletter. Space Possibility Some friends of the Dill Pickle have purchased a building near Fullerton and Sacramento. The have approached the Co-op about possibly sharing some space with us. The Board has been in contact with the owner and we are pursuing this opportunity. Articles of Interest Scott Althoff posted two articles to the gogocoop group pertaining to issues that interest Co-op members. Aritcle 1 was originally posted on the Cooperative Grocers Information Network site. It described a delivery based buying club. Article 2 was from the Cornucopia research group "Factory Farm Producing 'Organic' Milk Shut Down" This article was about Dean Foods who owns Horizon Organics and produces private label milk for Trader Joe’s, Safeway, Wild Oats, and Walmart. Apparently Dean Foods was operating a factory style farm and using it to produce “organic” milk. The full article is available on the above website and it is worth the read. Promotional Materials The Dill Pickle has commissioned a banner to be used at events like the Farmer’s Market. Co-op member Gretchen Hasse volunteered to design the banner for us. It is now on the way to the printer. Gretchen will also be designing t-shirts for us, which will be for sale at the Member Picnic. Billy Burdett has redesigned our Co-op flyer which we will pass out at events and leave at area businesses. First Annual Membership Picnic A member picnic is in the works. It is tentatively set for Sunday, August 19 from 11:00am-2:00pm. It will be held on the Boulevard next to the Logan Square Farmer’s Market. Details are being arranged and will be sent out soon. Consumer Cooperatives Management Association (CCMA) Conference Report Stephen Menyhart and Jen Cozad attended the CCMA Conference in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. It was an amazing event and they talked to people from around the country. There were a number of start-up Coops there like the Dill Pickle. Stephen and Jen found out that we are on the right track and that there is tons of support out there from the Coop community. Stephen wrote up a summary of the conference and published it on the gogocoop group. It will also be included in the member newsletter. Membership Structure The Board approved a membership structure in April and membership requirements are now in our Bylaws. At recent Board meetings we have worked on clarifying these requirements and writing them in a way that would be easier for members and others to understand.