- The board is excited to welcome a hearty welcome to our newest members, Joy Thorson and Terry Stewart! We also extend an excited “Welcome Back!” to re-elected board member Tom Wickersham.
- With new board members comes new officers! The board has elected Tom Wickersham to serve as President, Joy Thorson to serve as Vice President, Kristel McClenahan to serve as Treasurer, and Jess Cruz to serve as Secretary.
- We had an excellent showing of Co-op board and committee members at the recent Small and Strong Conference in Bloomington, MN. Check out the article in the month’s newsletter for a full report.
- We are getting our events for next year set up, so be sure to follow us on Facebook and keep up on our monthly newsletter to make sure you don’t miss any of these fabulous events.
- We’re making great progress on our Financial Pro Forma and starting to get ready to launch our Capital Campaign in the next year.
Small & Strong Conference
On November 12th five Co-op representatives were able to attend the annual Small & Strong Conference in Bloomington, MN. Read more about the day below.
Give the Gift of Membership
Struggling to find the perfect gift? Give the gift of Co-op Membership!
The holiday’s provide plenty of opportunities for stress, and finding the perfect gift shouldn’t be one more. There are a number of membership benefits that your giftee can start using immediately, like any of the discount offered by our 40+ business partners. You also get the peace of mind knowing that your gift benefits your community by creating a Co-op that will provide healthy and sustainable food options and keeps up to 15% of its revenue local.
Co-op gift memberships are easy to purchase and last a lifetime. They make an ideal group gift for the boss who has everything or the family member who’s impossible to shop for. Since membership benefits can extend to a whole household, they also make a great gift for a whole family. This holiday season go in with a group on a gift membership and spread the love of the Co-op!
Sidecar Coffee Roasters and the Cedar Falls Food Co-op: blending partnership to benefit our community
Sidecar Coffee Roasters is offering a limited edition Cedar Falls Food Co-op Holiday Blend! When it comes to holiday gifts, one thing is for certain – everyone loves consumable gifts, and the Cedar Falls Food Co-op Holiday Blend is the ultimate consumable.
Not only will you take a HUGE bite out of your shopping list, but with each bag of the co-op Holiday Blend sold, Sidecar Coffee Roasters will donate 10% to the Cedar Falls Food Coop. It’s like giving a gift twice (not to be confused with re-gifting). Do you need the perfect gift for friends, family or co-workers? Order 12 bags or more and they’ll add your own personalized holiday message on each bag!
Don’t forget to use your Co-op 10% discount off any online order of coffee. To do so, enter the coupon code CFCOOP10 and type your member # into the notes section when placing your online order. Go here to order: www.sidecarcoffeeroasters.com/cf-food-coop/
The Gift that Keeps on Giving
It may sound cliché, but it’s true. The partnerships that we’ve formed with our local businesses provide the Cedar Falls Food Co-op member-owners with savings that truly add up day by day & month by month for each year! What’s more is that our list keeps growing! This month we have 3 new local businesses that have graciously offered our members deals on their already fantastic services!Continue reading
Member Mavens Make it Happen!
At a recent house party hosted by our October Member Mavens, Jen Christiason and Sarah Frederick (plus their spouses, Kyle and Bob), a neighbor lamented the closing of Roots Market several years ago and how much she missed the local produce. As the conversation turned to the Cedar Falls Food Co-op and what it would provide, this same neighbor joined on the spot. In fact, five neighbors became co-op owners that night while they dined together over homemade soup and local bread. “I learned that many folks walking their dogs past our home every day have proud agricultural roots,” mused Jen. “It was delightful to hear the stories of their grandparents’ gardens and the canned goods that came from those efforts.” After the event, neighbors talked about how thrilled they were to gather together and connect with one another while learning about the efforts to bring a community-owned grocery store to the Cedar Valley.
Giving Thanks for Our Business Partner Program
With all of the businesses that have stepped up to support the food co-op & our membership base, you could very easily make back your one-time co-op member-owner equity share payment in savings from these wonderful, local companies in a very short period of time AND own a grocery store that shares your values of community, education & fresh, healthy foods to boot! This month we are adding two new local businesses to our ever-growing line-up of partners offering our member-owner base specials. If you take advantage of their offers, you’ll be more relaxed & sleep better than you have in a very long time!!
With twelve treatment rooms, d’vine Medical Spa® is a world class, wine inspired spa. The philosophy at d’vine Medical Spa® is to touch you beyond the physical layers of the body, embracing all of your senses and welcoming you on your journey to wellness. Unwind in their private men’s and women’s relaxation rooms as well as experience the steam rooms and floor to ceiling water walls. As a Cedar Falls Food Co-op member-owner, you’ll receive 5% off of all normally-priced day spa services. How divine?!!
Every function of your body takes place because of a message from your brain traveling down your spinal cord. When a vertebra is out of alignment, this misalignment causes irritation to the adjacent nerves carrying your vital brain messages! Like a kink in a hose, the message does not fully transmit to the organ or tissue it innervates. That’s like operating at 0-50% all day! Over time or immediately, you may feel specific pain or symptoms like indigestion, high blood pressure or allergies. What To Do? Contact Wayson Family Chiropractic! And after they’ve helped you determine the best plan of care for you & your needs, be sure to pick up a Chiroflow pillow to help improve your sleep! They’re offering co-op member-owners 20% off these amazing pillows!! You’ll have sweet dreams & healthy sleep with that deal!
As always please be sure to visit our Business Partner Specials page on our website to see all of the businesses that offer our member-owners specials & the full details of the offer. Happy fall & many thanks!
Member Spotlight: Eric Giddens
image by Dan Phillips Photography – Cedar Falls, Iowa
Eric Giddens, his wife Kendra, their 11-year old son Henry, their “son” Alan, an international student from Honduras, and cats Nemo and Skippy John currently reside in Cedar Falls. Eric is a Program Manager at the Tallgrass Prairie Center and the Center for Energy and Environmental Education at UNI. Kendra, a Cedar Falls native, is the music teacher at Southdale Elementary School. Continue reading
Save Room For Pie
How many Thanksgiving meals have you heard this? This November we are living this mantra, because if you join the Co-op as a new member-owner, you will definitely have to save room. That’s because there is a homemade pie for each person who becomes a member-owner between November 1 – 20*. And the giving doesn’t stop there – our business partner, Fosters Mattress has generously agreed to match each new member-owner share purchase with a $10 donation to the Northeast Iowa Food Bank.
Butternut Squash Soup
Photo: Squash soup garnished with beet kimchi, greek yogurt, apple peel, dulse flakes, and roasted daikon radishes.