by Stephanie Ricketts, Board Member
Welcome to summer—a new season in a very strange year. Thank you for continuing to be a part of our cooperative community!
It’s hard to know what the future holds as I write this article in May, but it seems very likely that social distancing measures will continue through June (and beyond) for the good of public health. As you shop at the stores, please be sure to maintain a six-foot distance from other shoppers whenever possible, and to wear a protective face covering if you are able. Both Co-op staff and your fellow Co-op shoppers will appreciate it.
Thank you
Speaking of shopping, I and the rest of the Board of Directors want to commend staff and management for their continued efforts to provide the groceries, supplements, and more that we rely on the Co-op for. THANK YOU to each of you for enabling us to continue to have a grocery cooperative during this pandemic. The Board would also like to give a deep and heartfelt THANK YOU to shoppers, for continuing to shop at your Co-op, and for the many kindnesses given to one another in these stressful times!
Board meetings online
Due to COVID-19, all Board meetings have moved online for the foreseeable future. If you would like to attend, you are welcome to join us at our virtual sessions. You can find the schedule of Board meetings, along with links to the live Webex, on the calendar, found at www.willystreet.coop/events. Meeting minutes will also be made available as usual after the Board approves them (this usually occurs at the next Board meeting, as a consent agenda item). The next Board meeting will take place on June 16, 2020 at 6:30pm.
Willy Street Co-op’s fiscal year changes over at the end of June, so the big work of the Board this month is finalizing the FY21 annual budget. The Board is aided in this work by the Willy Street Co-op Finance Committee, a group of astute Owners-at-large, three Board members (including me), and the Finance Director and General Manager. In addition, we will be reviewing a selection of policy reports, and preparing the agenda for this year’s Annual Meeting.
Annual meeting
What’s the Annual Meeting, you ask? The Annual Meeting is when we provide a year-in-review, a financial update, answer questions from attendees, and offer Board candidates the opportunity to address Co-op Owners. Normally this meeting is part of the larger Annual Meeting & Party (AMP), which has been cancelled in 2020 due to COVID-19. Instead, we will be hosting the Annual Meeting online on July 9, 2020. Information regarding the time of day and how to join the virtual meeting will be provided in next month’s Reader, on the Co-op’s website, via social media, and with information about this year’s upcoming elections. Please join us!
Annual Board elections
The Board is also working with staff and management to prepare for this year’s annual elections. Board candidate materials are due on June 1, so it’s too early to share how many candidates you will be choosing from to fill this year’s four vacant seats. (Usually we have three seats open for an election, but one Board member is resigning before their term is over.) Stay tuned to the Co-op’s website and the July Reader for voting information, candidate statements, bylaws revisions that are up for vote, and what’s on the ballot. Hear from candidates at the virtual Annual Meeting, and be on the lookout for voting and annual meeting information coming to you in the mail (or email if we have an email address for you on record).
Stay well, friends and neighbors! I look forward to celebrating the bounty of summer with you all, and to smizing* at you over my own face mask around the stores.
*To “smize” = to “smile with your eyes,” a term popularized by the legendary Tyra Banks.