Last night I went to a very informative happy hour for the South Philly Food Co-op – a local grocery store that is slated to open in 2017. They have been working on this for several years and are up to over 700 member-owners. I threw my cash down to be a part of this community.
What is a Co-op?
The International Cooperative Alliance defines a co-op as “an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise.” A co-op is not a charitable organization or social service agency.
Why did I join?
South Philly has had an interesting landscape over the last decade – particularly in the Easy Passyunk Avenue section. When I first moved to the city in 2011 nobody went to East Passyunk as there was nothing there but a few local shops. Now it’s a thriving food hub and up-and-coming neighborhood for the next generation to settle down and grow some roots.
I bought a house less than a mile from where this new grocery store would be. I want to support my community and spend my time with like-minded people so it makes sense that I would buy into an all-natural organic market that gets its products from local sources.
I also do miss non-profit life and this would be a great way to volunteer and be proactive in my community without putting a lot of money forth. You pay a one-time fee and you’re a member for life so now that they got my money (thanks, bonus!) I don’t have to worry about paying dues or anything.
How do you support your community?
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I was able to knock out a few interesting things this class! The middle piece is something that I started in the last round of Empowering the Painter and brought it back to continue to work through. Lots of problem solving!
