Author: Steve Alves

Chris Maher, General Manager

BriarPatch is supporting the Food for Change film with a donation of $5000, to be paid in two years. As one of very few cooperatives in our region, it is a challenge to communicate what co-ops are all about. People in our community, especially younger people, are unfamiliar with the concept and history. As natural and organic foods become increasingly popular and large grocery chains carry more of them, communicating the value of our food co-ops is increasingly important.
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Sharon Murphy, General Manager

We initially chose to invest $1,000 in the co-op documentary Food For Change as it reflects our Board ENDS Statement “… to create a healthy community including, but not limited to, a healthy regional food system.” However, we recently increased that commitment to a total of $5,000 invested over two years as we will also use the film for our staff classes and public presentations on co-op history.We have a new independent and very comfy local theater, the Zinema. Our first effort at sponsoring a couple films for the public on food issues was well received, and we look forward to hosting Food for Change.
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Dave Finet, General Manager

We’re contributing $1500 in support of the Food for Change documentary based on the suggestion in the funding plan and because we understand the importance of getting the story of the history of co-ops out so that people will realize how powerful a tool economic cooperation can be in times like these.
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Allie Mentzer, Marketing Manager

It is our hope that Steve Alves’ beautifully crafted film will generate new enthusiasm for the cooperative model. We will be contributing $6,000 over the next two years to the completion of the film. As Food for Change will reveal, co-ops are at their strongest during economically or environmentally unsettled times like these. Now is a crucial time to share the co-operative model broadly, so that together we can nourish our families and reinvigorate our local economies. Co-operators are problem solvers. Food for Change will remind us all of that simple, glorious fact. Many thanks to Steve Alves, his production team and Franklin Community Co-op for telling our story. We’ll be contributing as much cash as we can. If you’d like to do the same, please invest now.
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David Lippman, General Manager

It’s important to understand the values of co-ops that preceded us. That’s why we’re investing in this movie. We are a direct offspring of the so-called “old wave” of the 1970s, whose story this movie tells. In our early years, we received tremendous help and support from Associated Cooperatives, who understood that our new, natural foods co-op was a kindred spirit. They supported us, nurtured us, and helped us to succeed. Food For Change honors their legacy and the continuum of cooperative principles which has driven cooperative movements through the last two centuries.
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Erbin Crowell, Executive Director

2012 will be an immense opportunity for our food co-ops to tell our story. The United Nations’ International Year of Co-ops is an unprecedented occasion for us to communicate our difference and present our vision for a healthy, just and sustainable food system, rooted in co-operation.
Continue reading “Neighboring Food Co-op Assoc.”