Friday, November 16, 2012

Election count is IN! Your new Board is...

After a lengthy count (and re-count) last night, we are pleased to announce our new 2013 Board members!

John Regan (182 votes)
Erin Genia (168 votes)
Dani Madrone (159 votes)
Teresa Young (150 votes)
Niki Bilodeau (125 votes)

Congratulations to our new Board members!

The next runner-up to Niki was Isabella Rogol at 124 votes! Yikes! Don't let anyone ever tell you that your single vote doesn't count in the Co-op elections. (To be sure of our count, every ballot was counted by at least two people, and if a discrepancy was found, a third person recounted. We feel confident in the accuracy the overall count.)


We had an excellent group of candidates this year and sincerely hope that some of the folks who didn't make it on to the Board this time around will consider running again next year.

Thank you to everyone who participated, and many thanks to our late-night ballot-verification and vote-counting crew: volunteers Laura Kaszynski, Jaime Rossman, and Rochelle Gause, and staff members Fern, Jason, Jayne and Jackie.

Thursday, November 15, 2012

After Capitalism: Economic Democracy in Action

From the organizers of the "Creating Cooperatives Conference" (including the Olympia Food Co-op!) we now present...

After Capitalism: Economic Democracy in Action


What:  A presentation and conversation with Dada Maheshvarananda, monk, activist and author living in Venezuela

When: Tuesday, November 27, 7PM


Where: 
Meeting Room B at the Olympia Center, 222 Columbia St. Olympia

Alternate Date/Place:  Wednesday, November 28th, Noon, The Evergreen State College, Seminar 2, D1107

Details:  Dada will introduce ideas in his recent book, After Capitalism, posing the question: "If global capitalism doesn’t work for everyone, what’s the alternative?"

Today a powerful few control most of the world’s wealth, while most people work harder than
ever, earn less, are forced from job to job, and fall into debt. In contrast, emerging, independent
local economies of small businesses, cooperatives and public utilities are building careers and
meaningful futures for individuals and communities.

This is the message of Dada Maheshvarananda, a monk, activist, and author of the new book,
After Capitalism: Economic Democracy in Action. He explains how social crises are interlinked
with personal struggles for peace and justice. His practical ideas are grounded in a new socioeconomic
model based on local, sustainable economies, social justice and environmental
protection. Dada directs the Prout Research Institute of Venezuela.
We hope to see you there as we discuss new possibilities for community economics, at home and across borders.

Thank you,
The Olympia 2012 Year of the Cooperative Committee

EVENT SPONSORED BY: Olympia 2012 Year of the Cooperative Committee
The Evergreen State College, Political Economy and Social Movements

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Board Meeting Agenda for 11/15


Please note that this week's Board meeting will end early in order for staff to begin counting election ballots as soon as the stores close at 9pm. 

Olympia Food Co-op meetings are open to the membership. They take place at our downtown office at 610 Columbia St., on the third Thursday of each month. If you are interested in presenting an agenda item, contact ofcboard at olympiafood.coop. 
   
 Proposed Board Agenda for November 15, 2012 6:30-9pm


Agenda Item
Action
Time
Announcements

share
2 min
Mission Statement & Commitments Review

share
3 min
Member Comment

listen
10 min
Staff report

listen
5 min
Wild Rivers Letter
Should the Co-op sign on to a letter to Rep. Herrera re: protecting wild rivers in SW WA?

consent
10 min
2013 Budget – final draft

consent
30 min
Committee Reports

share
20 min
Drug & Alcohol Policy

consent
10 min
Annual Meeting Debrief & Feedback

discuss
15 min
Bylaws Review
Should we plan for a 2013 member process & ballot re: changing some portions of our bylaws?

discuss
20 min
Committees Review Cont’d
Ongoing work on reviewing, updating, and changing Board Committees

discuss
35 min
Executive Session

discuss
10 min

                                                               Total Meeting Time:        2 hours 30 min

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Annual Meeting THIS Saturday!

Delicious, catered food by Ninevah, hoppin' music by Erev Rav... oh yeah, and a chance to hear from the Board candidates, mingle with other Co-op members, and ask staff all those burning questions you've been saving up! It'll be way better than a rainy day at home... 

(And if you want to bring your little ones with you, we'll have free childcare, too!)


It's the Annual Meeting!


So grab your calendar and write this down:

Saturday, Nov. 11th from 1-4pm at the Olympia Center. 

Parking is available on the street and in the Olympia Center's parking lot. 
It's free!


Here's our schedule:

1-1:15: Settle in. Grab some coffee and a chair. Kid's area opens at 1pm.

1:15-2:15 Presentations. There will be a 10-15 minute overview of the Co-op's activities and finances, followed by 3 minute speeches from each of our Board candidates. We'll have ballots and pens ready for you to vote.

2:15-3 Food, mingling, and talking with staff. Visit the booths of each of our main committees (Expansion, Local Farms & Products, Volunteers, Outreach & the Newsletter, Member Relations Committee and the Developing Cooperatives Committee) to chat with friendly staff and volunteers ready to give you the scoop on our plans and hear your suggestions. Plus, Tulip Credit Union will be there. If you finish up visiting staff at the booths,  have some more food and get to know your fellow Co-op members by playing Co-op Bingo!

3-3:45 Erev Rav Klezmorphic Orchestra takes the stage with high energy, family friendly, toe-tapping music! The Kid's area will close down at around this time, so your whole family can dance together. 

3:45-4 Closing. How did it go? Did you like our new format for the Annual Meeting? We want to hear from you!
 
If you have questions or suggestions, shoot us an email at ofcboard at olympiafood.coop/