monday 1/16 general meeting

Monday 1/16 General meeting 
7PM – 9PM
390 Seneca Ave 3R (Seneca & Stanhope)
no buzzer – I’ll prop the doors 10min before but
if you can’t get in call Laura. phone # on the google group post.

Heres the agenda ==========================================================================================

7 – Report back from the financial planning meeting, our decision about the Alizee cafe space  (Kayla/ Amanda/ Silvia/ Laura)

bottom line is that we just don’t have enough money to make this happen right now, even if Alizee were to accept a payment plan of half upfront and half later – we still need enough money to put down rent and security, and money to operate buying clubs. And a reliable way to raise 6K in 6 months. While changing our membership investment policy is probably the way to raise that cash, thats a decision that merits more time and discussion, and should not be something that we rush through or take lightly. Without having a sound fiscal policy in place to fund a storefront now, we feel it would be irresponsible to take the risk and possibly bankrupt the coop.

  

7:30 – What we can afford to do: Restart buying clubs asap, proposals for temporary spaces (Silvia)

theres still the Loom space, and possibility of a good garage-food-distribution partnership. Most important thing is that we start operating in some limited capacity again. 

8 – Timeline for a building a strategic plan (timeline for board elections, bylaws revisions, membership and financial goals, revising our fiscal policy)

This isn’t time to discuss the actual details in the goals or policy or bylaws now,  just to set a clear timeline for when we are discussing what important matters in the next 3 months so that we can all research and prepare. Goal of this discussion is to have a schedule we can publish on the website and stick to. 

If you have a good idea, write it down and do your homework, figure out a good way to present it to the coop.   (later)

8:30 – update on the film series

OR, depending on who shows up when, we can do the update on the film series first.

 ==========================================================================================

Thanks all, and please pass on the word, we are not sending this one out via Mailchimp in order to conserve our email blasts for the film series and voting decisions.

-Laura

January 2012 General Monthly Meeting

Monday 1.9.12 @7pm

Location: TBD

 

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED – Come to the meeting!

Volunteer with the Bushwick Food Coop community.  We need help redesigning and maintaining our webpage.  We need a coop Secretary.  We need an Outreach Committee Head, General Manager, Accountant, Work Shift Coordinator, and Store Managers.  We need scheduling, event organizing, designing, business planning, flyer distribution, and retail system design help.  Join the BFC google group to find out about weekly Monday coop wide meetings and Siting committee meetings and to stay in the inner coop conversation, and/or email manager@bushwickfoodcoop.org to volunteer your help.  Pledge volunteer hours to help the coop in this transitional time.

 

Happy New Year Bushwick Food Cooperative!

things you can look forward to in the new year:

LEASE SIGNING:  The Bushwick Food Coop and Chrissy’s Cooking Club are excited to be closing a deal with enthusiastic Charlie and Maria Verde, owners of Verde’s Pizza and our new space at 265 1/2 Irving Avenue right across the street.

BUYING CLUBS:  We are looking for a space to hold buying clubs in until the lease is signed and the space is finished.  If you can offer or recommend a space, please let us know: manager@bushwickfoodcoop.org.

HYBRID STORE FRONT-BUYING CLUB:  Once we have a storefront we will be open a few days a week and offering a weekly buying club for perishables as we build membership and funds to be open more hours and to stock perishable organic produce around the clock.

DESIGN AND BUILD:  Design charette, community design input/feedback, and build days to come.  Sign up on the Pledge Drive Form to receive email notifications of these — we encourage pledging hours too!

FILM SERIES:  Stay tuned for dates and location of an amazing choice of films this year.

ANNUAL BOARD MEETING:  Elect new board members, vote in new bylaws.

COMMUNITY:  Fill out the upcoming community survey, and be prepared for several wonderful community based events and input/feedback opportunities.

FUNDRAISER HOUSEWARMING:  Expect deliciously prepared local organic foods, silent donation opportunities, and bands and booze for the community.

FRIDAY 12/9 DISTRO & HOLIDAY POTLUCK

alongside a special Nextdoorganics CSA distribution

Distribution 3:30-8pm  |  Potluck 5:30-8:30pm 

at ‘the new storefront’ - 265 1/2 Irving Avenue

Nextdoorganics is offering a special deal to the BFC community – a one time trial order from their excellent weekly winter CSA program, including local farm fresh eggs, cheese, bread and other locally produced delicious pantry items!

If you would like a Nextdoorganics CSA share for 12/9 pickup,
please order here by Tuesday night 12/6.  
www.formstack.com/forms/nextdoorganics-nextdoorganics_csa_membership__copy

And if you don’t want to order a basket, stop by just to shop for dry goods! This BFC distribution will be open to everyone with all the usual goodies in our dry bulk bins – flours, oats, nuts, beans, sugar, salt, coffee, jars of tahini, chocolate sauce and more… a great opportunity to bring along your neighbors or friends, see the new co-op space, stay for some potluck and a good time! 

To volunteer a shift at this distribution, email workshift@bushwickfoodcoop.org - if you order or plan to shop, please consider signing up for a shift.
**As BFC is in transition and will not be able to hold regularly scheduled full distributions of food just yet, we encourage you to check out the Nextdoorganics’ regular weekly CSA subscription, more details here. There is also a monthly Garden of Eve Farm winter veggie share via the Bushwick CSA, info and signup here. And don’t forget about the Bushwick Farmers Market Holiday Bazaar - every weekend in December at the Loom!   

Weekly Coop Meetings – Mondays at 7pm

@265 1/2 Irving Ave.  
Snacks, ideas, new members welcome!  Every Monday until we are all moved in to the new store space and the buying club are up and running.

Ordering Now Open for Thanksgiving Turkeys

To be distributed Monday 11/21 

at the new storefront (265 1/2 Irving Ave)
Ordering closes 11/10.
If you order, please sign up for a workshift.
Those turkeys won’t distribute themselves, you know.

True Pastured, No Hormones, Non-GMO Local Farm Raised Turkeys

Delivered FRESH, not frozen. Beautiful.

The details: These whole birds will be available to pre-order in 3 approximate sizes:
SMALL (10-15 lb)
MEDIUM (16-20 lb)
LARGE (20-25 lb) 

The Price is per Pound
(Either $3.97/# or $4.04/# depending on the size and availability of our suppliers. Likewise, the birds will either be from Interlaken NY or Lancaster PA, depending on the bulk of orders per size and distributor supply.)

Please Note: the price per size in foodclub is only an estimate. Your price will be adjusted at pickup based on actual weight. Pickup is, as usual, first come first serve. If you order a turkey, you must pick it up and pay for it. We are not taking deposits, this is honor system, please don’t abuse the trust or collective bank account of your fellow co-op members. 

Reserve your turkey here.

Turkey Questions? Ask Laura - sourcing@bushwickfoodcoop.org 

Also available through this limited Thanksgiving distribution is a lovely
$20 Market Basket – “Root Cellar Edition”

Winter squash, turnips, rutabagas, apples and everything else fruit or vegetable that makes fall in NYC the best darn hearty eating season ever. Actual produce in the share will vary based on how many orders for the basket we recieve and what the best farm deals are that week. But you can be assured that everything is a keeper, kept properly.

If you have a specific concern, question or allergy but wish to purchase market basket, please contact sourcing@bushwickfoodcoop.org before ordering closes and we’ll see if we can work something out.    

What else can I buy? Wheres all the usual buying club variety, and why is this distribution happening on a Monday?
Though this is a limited buying club, we will also have on hand for overstock purchase some extra cured onions or squash, plus all the dry goods still in stock (salt for brining! beans! flour! chocolate sauce!). Because we are transitioning into a semi-finished space, we are restricting the variety of this first buying club distribution while we work out some logistics with equipment and workshifts.  The distro is happening on 11/21 because it works between our construction schedule, the general meeting happening there already, and trying to get you a fresh turkey with enough time to prepare it before the holiday.

Want to know whats happening with the new space?
Why not sign up to volunteer a few hours, or come to a short weekly general meeting (Mondays at 7pm, 265 Irving Ave).

Invite your friends and neighbors!

General Meetings New Space Updates

We are currently negotiating the lease for a shared storefront at 265 1/2 Irving Ave (at Bleecker) with Chrissys Cooking Club.  The lease will most likely be signed by 11/15, and occupancy starts Dec 1. For more details please see the google group.

In the meantime, there is a lot of work to be done.
Please get involved by coming out to a meeting -

General Membership Open Meetings 
Every Monday in November, at 7PM
in the new space – 265 1/2 Irving Ave

There will also be a series of Siting/ Space planning meetings and other committee meetings over the next month. Keep your ear to the google group for those.

also planning a Thanksgiving Distribution for 11/19, for which ordering will open 11/4.

 

 

 

 

 

Update: A Possible Storefront

What happened to the buying club? During the past few months, lowered member involvement resulted in an inability to sustain the buying club and to make way on necessary larger organizational tasks. The buying club was put on hold and a series of coop-wide meetings and committee meetings were held to reorganize our structure and the way we do things.  We also received word in late September that we would no longer be able to operate distribution out of Brooklyn Fireproof — our buying club and CSA home for almost a year. 10/5 Summit meeting decisions At the summit meeting we decided to put the buying club on hold in order to devote all available resources toward finding ourselves a new home.  We brainstormed priorities for the coop space and internal organization. In the weeks following, we reviewed 4 potential suggested temporary locations, and found that only 2 of them were actually appropriate to use.  Of these two (Loom & Chrissy’s Cooking Club space), online discussion favors the CCC Irving street space.  You can find the location reports and discussion on the google groups. 10/17 Community Partners & Siting Meeting Results To discuss the logistics of partnership in a space, Chrissys Cooking Club, BFC andEcostationNY (Bushwick Farmers Market) met last Monday. You can find meeting notes here. Those present are generally in favor of partnership and excited about this space. So whats this storefront I’m hearing about? Checkout this little song & dance for the partnership and shop on Irving Ave:http://bit.ly/qkAexv Now What? Feedback, Discussion, Concerns, Logistics Come to the Meeting Monday 10/24 7PM in the backroom at Verde Coal Oven Pizza  254 Irving Avenue, Brooklyn, NY If you can’t make it to the meeting,  GIVE FEEDBACK HERE PLEASE RESPOND BY 5PM THIS MONDAY 10/24 TO BE CONSIDERED AT THE 10/24 DECISION MAKING MEETING *Those who have been coming to meetings and deeply involved believe that many membership and those on this list trust and are waiting for the coop leadership to make decisions and create a positive, community, holistically healthy, amazing organic food distribution system and shopping experience without having the time or inclination to be involved themselves.  At meetings we use a consensus decision making model.  In lieu of an evote, and in an effort to replicate the in-person consensus model on a much larger, virtual scale, we ask that you fill out this FEEDBACK FORM.  All responses are welcome — we love the encouraging words!  But we would especially like to address any serious concerns or objections.  In this case, please include a way to contact you so we can address your concerns, and gain consensus, directly. And as always, feel free to give your feedback and discuss any issues via our Google Group. This only works with your help! Until we start holding buying clubs again, all members are effectively on hold and are not responsible for working. However, we do encourage you to work on a voluntary basis to help with siting and getting the buying club going again. MANY HANDS MAKE LIGHT WORK! SIGN UP TO VOLUNTEER  We need help to move our coop into a new space, and also to build it out during the next month. Build work will probably be heaviest the second half of November. Details about specific volunteer opportunities will be posted to the google group, website and emailed to those who sign up. Monday 10/24 Meeting Agenda 6:30pm Membership Orientation, snack (pizza!) 7:00pm Situation Update 7:30pm Siting Reports and Q&A 8:00pm Site Voting 8:30pm Plan, Strategize Move 9:30pm Adjourn Community Partners: Chrissy’s Cooking Club Ecostation New York / Bushwick Farmer’s Market Boswick Farms Community Memberships: Bushwick Community High School, Bushwick Head Start Community Supporters: Bushwick IMPACT, Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council, Brooklyn Fireproof, Roberta’s, City of Life Harvest

Thanks for hanging on.  Stay tuned for Thanksgiving turkey pre-orders, coming soon.

Squat Luck!

Let’s get together and eat!

The Bushwick Food Coop invites you to a community potluck:
Sunday, October 16
2pm-Sundown
Maria Hernandez Park, Bushwick

Bring food, drink, music, games, etc.
Play in the sun, lay in the grass, and meet some neighbors who like to have potlucks. This is a good chance for us to hang out as neighbors and share our ideas and visions for the BFC in an informal setting. We hope to see you there!

Summit Meeting

The Oct 5 meeting location has changed to The Loom Building – 1st fl Main circulation space 1087 Flushing Ave Please BYO chair, cushion or yoga mat, and something to write on. (We have a space, but no tables or chairs.) * NO BULK DRY GOODS DISTRIBUTION * We are sorry to cancel this but since we are unable to use the space at Brooklyn Fireproof we cannot distribute food tomorrow. Please bring a snack to share if you can. * * *  Summit Agenda October 5th, 2011:  6:00 – 10:00pm  6:00- 6:15pm Introductions Briefly: Who are you, what brings you here, what history of work have you done with the co-op, what do you hope to do in the future?   6:15-6:45pm New Member Orientation first ever BFC member orientation! and a brief history of the co-op.  6:45-7pm Current Snapshot    of operations, in numbers and reports generated by various committees.View all reports here.   7-7:15pm Snacks, Coffee, Bathroom Break 7-7:45pm Writing on the wall – silently brainstorm solutions Brainstorming on large sheets of paper or whiteboard on the walls. If you are unable to attend the summit, you can still contribute to these brainstorms via this google doc. Please submit your comments before Wednesday 3pm, and they will be added to the sheets at the meeting.    Permanent location: what we as a co-op want it to look like, services, neighborhood, etc. output: a list of ideals for a location, in order of priority to serve as an ongoing guide for siting. Outreach/ Building Community: how can we engage more diversity in our community? how can all active members help with outreach?  Youth, families, transient and long standing residents. brainstorm events to build community within the current co-op members, to expand towards immediate new members (family, friends, roommates, neighbors, etc), and to raise funds. Financial Health: How can we provide more financial health and stability for the co-op? What can we do to minimize risk and maximize profit? Are there are any out-of-the-box solutions or ideas to generate revenue? Dividing the workload: how can we staff more effectively with our current membership and planning for growth up to 250 members?? What systems or information sharing can we put in place to make operations most effective? How do we currently value people’s input — is everyone’s contribution equally weighted? what changes could we enact to make burnout less frequent, participation more rewarding, and staffing more stable? output: redefined staffing model, which could include an outline of paid staff (eventually), rotating positions for new members, and value assessment of workload. 7:45-8:00pm Small groups/ Synthesis    Those present divide into 4 small groups to summarize the comments on each paper, create proposals with actions (if possible).   8:00-9:00pm Proposals, Discussion, Voting Each topic should have a conclusion, proposal, and action items assigned to members.  Permanent location 8:00- 8:15pm Outreach/ Community Building 8:15- 8:30pm Financial Health 8:30- 8:45pm Workload 8:45- 9:00pm 9:00-9:10pm Bathroom/ Stretch/ Yoga break    9:10-10:00pm Internal Organization – Projects & Proposals  presentations from committee members on some ideas previously discussed in past meetings.   Proposal: Plan to create snack-packs for Doe fund: ready; willing; able. How would it work? How many people would have to ‘enroll’ to make it profitable? How much would it cost? output: a model program with what we will provide and what we need in turn from the RWA home in order to operate. this will be directly discussed with their Director. Proposal: We create an organized series of documents online for operational job or tasks in each committee. Preferable to use something that many people can edit, like wordpress, google sites, or a wiki. Proposal: Committees must meet in person once a month. Proposal: All active members must join the google group. Proposal: As an orientation, new members will work a rotation of shifts throughout all committees (in order e.g. distribution, sourcing, outreach, membership tabling…). This only works if committees have regular meetings and also have operational tasks documented and easily shared online. Buying club operation: Does it make sense to shift our current buying club operation to a different day(s)? hours? schedule? between-distro delivery? How would this work with the revised staffing model and plan to move into a grocery store? What makes the most fiscal sense? output: confirmation or renovation of the current distribution system.

* * * If you are not already a part of it, please Join the BFC Google Group It is the best way for us to stay in touch between meetings and distribution days.

For those of you who are former/inactive members or just interested, we want to know why you’re not currently involved! Please fill out this survey to give us your feedback and let us know how we can improve the coop.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SMJXHLX

This will be especially helpful in our planning, as we are planning to hold a summit in the evening on Wednesday, October 5 to strategize about the short and long term future of the buying club, our plans to open a grocery store, and the Coop. The summit will also likely include an orientation for anyone who would like more information about the coop and available work positions. More information about the summit will be forthcoming.

Former/inactive members, we want your feedback!

For those of you who are former/inactive members or just interested, we want to know why! Please fill out this survey to give us your feedback and let us know how we can improve the coop.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SMJXHLX

This will be especially helpful in our planning, as we are planning to hold a summit in the evening on Wednesday, October 5 to strategize about the short and long term future of the buying club, our plans to open a grocery store, and the Coop. The summit will also likely include an orientation for anyone who would like more information about the coop and available work positions. More information about the summit will be forthcoming.