by Kristina Kuhaupt, Customer Experience Manager
A Hopeful New Year
As I look back on the year I can hardly believe that it has been well over two years since the thrust of the pandemic began, all that it meant, and all that we as a community have endured. What it has shown me is that we are resilient, care for each other, and move forward with purpose even though the virus is not eradicated. When the pandemic started, I was working on a local retail sales floor on a daily basis, thus seeing and experiencing firsthand how this pandemic affected all of us, both staff and shoppers alike; and you know what I learned? Patience and hope. I want to personally thank all our customer-facing staff for another year of forging ahead with collective care and concern for our customers even when many tasks are in flux; you are truly appreciated! Thank you to our customers who have been with us during this entire time and have treated us like family; we appreciate your dedication to the Co-op’s mission and your support!
Mid-October of this year, Willy West dedicated a stunning mural in partnership with DAMA (Developing Artists Murals and Alliances, formerly Dane Arts Mural Arts) pointing to “The Joy of Life.” The artist, Maria Schirmer Devitt, beautifully illustrated our collective past, present, and future on this earth as we cycle through the seasons and contribute to the cycle of our food system; pointing to the truth that we all rely on nature, each other, and paying respect to our food ecosystems. Consider reading the inspiring artist narrative below, it will give you a greater appreciation for the statement of this piece as you pass this mural when you shop at Willy West.
“The Joy of Life”
By: Maria Schirmer Devitt of DAMA WI
“I believe we all come from people who tended to the earth, and that the earth tended to us right back. We are in a moment where it feels like we have lost our way, I offer this mural as a reminder to imagine a way home.
“The bright star sun leads the way, a starting point for the life cycle.
“Then there are producers—the plants—they make their own food. Honestly, the magic of this boggles my mind. From the energy in the sun, they create food inside their green bodies. I included acorns of an oak savanna, one of the most endangered ecosystems that is native to Wisconsin. One of the defining characteristics of an oak savanna is the wide open space between the trees that allows the fire resistant oak branches to grow wide and for a myriad of other plants and creatures to flourish when the underbrush is cleared by fire.
“Then there are the consumers, like us and the animals, who rely on the producers to live. Their lives feed ours. One of my favorite times at the coop is the nascent spring when the ramps arrive in coiled bunches like soft little snakes sleeping. I was astonished to see them growing wild at a state park this spring, their green and red leaves greeting me from the trail. Then there are the decomposers, the fungi, the mushrooms, often overlooked, but providing the vital service of transformation. They use energy from lives that were lived and make life from the dead. They show us that nothing is ever truly lost.
“But, it’s not as linear as all that. The plants need us; the plants need the bees and the hummingbirds. We help them produce and reproduce. Their lives feed our lives. There are wildflowers that grace our state, trillium, blazing star, milkweed.”
“Robin Wall Kimmerer, in her book Braiding Sweetgrass, describes cooperation of plants and humans together. In one chapter, she delves into ‘The genius of indigenous agriculture, the three sisters. Together these plants, corn, beans, and squash—feed the people, feed the land, and feed our imaginations, telling us how we might live.’ As one of three sisters myself, this wisdom resonates deep within me. Notice the tall oldest sister, the corn stalk supporting the middle sister, the climbing beans around her, and the youngest sister, the squash spreading out to shade their tender roots. They cooperate and contribute to one another’s wellbeing, not competing. For more in depth reading, please read Braiding Sweetgrass; it is a love letter for life on earth.
“If you look closely at the mural, you will see footprints that were created by children in this community. Footprints show us where we have been, where others have been, and are only left when the soles of our feet touch the earth. We need your footprints on this earth, feeling the joy of life, helping us all get home.
“I want to show that we need everyone of us, I want to honor indigenous wisdom in agriculture, and offer footprints leading us home to ourselves and each other.”
Holiday Fund Drive for Double Dollars and Partner Food Pantries: Final Push to the Finish Line
We are halfway through our two-month matching campaign to support the Double Double Dollars Fund and our five partner food pantries: Goodman Community Center Fritz Food Pantry, Lussier Community Education Center, Middleton Outreach Ministry, The River Food Pantry, and Wil-Mar Neighborhood Center. There are two simple ways to participate: Donate to Double Dollars using the $1, $5, $10, or $25 scan cards at the cash registers; or reuse bags for packing your groceries at checkout. Whenever you reuse a bag, we record 10¢ that we would have spent on a paper bag and instead contribute all those saved dimes to the Double Dollars Fund. When you support Double Dollars this November and December, we will match up to $15,000 to provide gift cards for our local food pantries to use to purchase fresh foods that are not as easy to get in the winter months. This is a $5,000 increase from last year to help relieve the effects of the pandemic over this time. As of this writing, the November part of the campaign was off to a great start, with $4,279.10 for Double Dollars, and $4.279.10 for our food pantries. Let’s keep it up, and end the year off, propelling our community food needs in the right direction.
As a reminder, Double Dollars is a nutrition incentive program to help those using FoodShare/QUEST purchase fresh or frozen fruits, vegetables, legumes, and seeds and seedlings for growing edible plants. The Double Dollars season runs from October to May at the Co-op and June to November at participating farmers’ markets. The Double Dollars Fund, with your cash donations and bag reuse combined, has provided over $348,000 to the program since April 2017.
The Double Dollars match benefiting our food pantry partners is made possible through abandoned and donated Owner equity. When Owners leave the Co-op, their equity invested belongs to them and they are given the option to have their equity refunded or to donate it to use for charitable purposes such as this match and the Community Reinvestment Fund grants.
Madison Reading Project Book Drive Through December 10
Through December 10th Willy Street Co-op will be participating in the annual Community Book Drive to benefit Madison Reading Project to grant book wishes to local children this holiday season. Collection bins are in the foyer of each of our three stores. You can participate by dropping off new books in the bins, or by selecting a Book Wish from the bin to fulfill. With your help, Madison Reading Project will help ignite a love for reading by providing 15,000 free books to children in Dane County this holiday season. Visit www.madisonreadingproject.com.
Come to any of our locations and drop off a favorite book or two—thank you!
Hurricane Fiona/Ian Global Giving: THANK YOU!
A heartfelt thank you to all of you who contributed to our Hurricane Giving Drive from October 23-29th at our registers!! During this short amount of time, you helped raise $4,255.58, which was matched dollar for dollar with the approval of our Board from our abandoned equity fund. This brought our final total raised to $8,511.16. All monies were given to GlobalGiving, a nonprofit organization that supports other nonprofits by connecting them to donors and companies. GlobalGiving provides natural disaster support to medical facilities and first responders, and the funds donated by our customers were split equally between groups providing Hurricanes Ian and Fiona relief. Additionally, the Co-op donated $500 to Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF) to raise funds for co-ops that are facing losses from some of the worst hurricanes in recorded history. These monies were matched by National Grocers Cooperative for a total of $1,000 to help cooperatives meet the needs of our neighbors in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Florida suffering from both hurricanes. If you are interested in contributing to this cause as well, please visit cdf.coop.
Community Reinvestment Fund Now Seeking Nonprofit and Cooperative Applications!
Applications for the Community Reinvestment Fund (CRF) grant are now open, and we will be accepting applications from local 501(c)3 nonprofits and cooperatives through January 31. We continue to conduct the application process earlier so that organizations relying on funding for projects tied to the growing season will receive their funding earlier in spring. In addition, this year we evaluated the barriers to entry, qualifications, and total amount distributed based on our continued Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work, thus broadening the potential impact of this cycle.
Since 1992, the Willy Street Co-op Community Reinvestment Fund has been making a difference in the quality of life for our community by funding developmental and educational projects that promote food justice and/or access, creating/developing Cooperative businesses, sustainable agriculture, health and well-being, and social change.
The Community Reinvestment Fund Committee is interested in funding innovative, educational, and/or entrepreneurial endeavors that impact a large group of people, reach out to underserved populations, create jobs or develop skills, foster social engagement, and offer opportunities for diversifying partnerships and collaboration.
Grants are awarded to nonprofits and/or cooperative organizations benefiting Dane County with priority given to organizations run, operated, and/or benefitting marginalized groups and organizations with limited access to funding. Preference may be given to endeavors benefiting the Madison and Middleton metropolitan areas and organizations that have not been funded in previous years by the Community Reinvestment Fund. Grants are competitive, and this year the Co-op’s Board of Directors has allocated $55,000 from abandoned Owner equity to award. For more information and to download the application, visit www.willystreet.coop/crf.
Access Committee Candidate Selection: We need your help!
The Co-op seeks two Owners-at-large to serve on the 2023 Access Discount Review Committee. The Access Discount is an Owner benefit for those who demonstrate that they have a financial need. When Owners enroll in the Access Discount Program, they receive 10% off groceries for a year, renewable annually. Assessing the program is important to ensure that our qualifiers align with changes to public and private benefit programs, to review whether everyone in our community feels like they can both shop and join the Co-op, and to make the Access Discount Program a continued resource for preventing food insecurity in our community. The bulk of committee work for the 2023 term will be completed between February and April; during your service, you will receive a 15% discount applied to your Ownership account as a thank-you for your participation and input!
Minimal time outside the meetings is required to review the agendas prior to meeting. Ideal candidates participate in Willy Street Co-op’s Access Discount Program and/or have experience working in food justice, access, or security.
Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. no later than December 21, 2022 with a brief resume as well as your interest and qualifications to serve.
In Closing—A Warm Winter Wish
I want to wish you and yours a joyful end of the year filled with the magic of the season! Thank you for partnering with us throughout the year both in our efforts to provide locally sourced food and care for the community equally—your dedication to our cooperative efforts is truly appreciated! Cheers to a continued better world this New Year!
Many of you do not know me personally, but for those that do know, OneRepublic is my all-time favorite band for many reasons, but the main reason is that they create many thematic messages with lyrics that focus on the human condition/struggle. I encourage you as you close out the year, to listen to Better Days; it is a positive uplifting message inspired by the pandemic to look for the continued hope for a better future…collectively.
“Oh, I know that there'll be better days
“Oh, that sunshine 'bout to come my way
“May we never ever shed another tear for today
“'Cause, oh, I know that there'll be better days”