Articles by Geoff

 

SEPTEMBER 2012 NEWSLETTER

Summer’s over. Did you eat enough basil and cherry tomatoes? There’s a lot of news to cram into this month’s newsletter. Murals are being primed, documentaries are being filmed, The Co-op is hiring, and our Fall Party is in the works for October 6th. But the real buzz at The Co-op is that, if we can fill up the work shifts, Monday shopping begins October 8th. To remind you all that we need shift leaders to help get Mondays off the ground, there are no less than forty references to that in this newsletter. See if you can count them all. And please head over to shiftplanning.com and sign up for a Monday shift now! Tuesday’s General Meeting will be our first one since July, and topics will include the board election, a vote on the grievance procedure, and a discussion about banked hours. Come on down, join in the discussion, vote and earn some work credit at a meeting (if you’re a member)! The meeting’s agenda can be read here.

NOW HIRING! STORE COORDINATOR POSITION AVAILABLE Do you have what it takes to be our first paid staffer? There’s a job available as our Store Coordinator, our rock, the person around whom a galaxy of volunteers will orbit. It’s a 25-30 hour/week position that pays $19-25 / hour commensurate with experience. Some managing experience is required, as well as availability during our open hours and our receiving hours. All the details are here at the Store Coordinator link on our website.

FALL SHINDIG WITH FOOD AND MUSIC Come on out for Greene Hill Food Co-op’s Fall Celebration, co-hosted by Bed-Stuy’s own Sound Liberation Front (SLF) — on Saturday, October 6, from noon to 6pm, at Putnam Triangle. Why not, it’s FREE!?! SLF will premiere their custom “Tower of Sound” and their rockin’ DJ Crew will be spinning old-school reggae, funk, soul, and afrobeat for the community to get down! Shambhala Yoga and Dance Center will be offering dance lessons and performances including afrocize, salsa, and kids’ dance. And yoga sessions from Free School Yoga will help keep the crowd limber. Food samples will be offered from sustainable, local and organic vendors including Equal Exchange, Granola Labs, and GrowNYC. Cooking demonstrations from the Greene Hill Food Co-op’s own Education Committee will give helpful tips to members and guest shoppers on exciting ways to use their fresh, delicious ingredients. And to really satiate your appetite, local restaurants such as Luv Tea and Cochinita Tacos will be selling their favorites dishes. Kids can enjoy face painting, children’s music, and a puppeteer from Brooklyn’s own Puppetry Arts. BK Farmyards will introduce live chickens for backyard farming education and New York’s Office of Recycling Outreach and Education (OROE) will host activities that promote recycling and waste-prevention for all types of materials. Other educational activities include gardening, composting and greenhouse how-to sessions. If you’re feeling artistic, you can add your thoughts, ideas and drawings to the “Community Message Boards” a public art activity (and part of the Co-op’s Backyard Mural Project) with artwork by Brooklyn Artist and Co-Op Member Melissa Godoy Nieto facilitated by Community Member Julie Flynn. Or simply bring a t-shirt or bag for on-site silk screening! And to top it off — for this day only, Greene Hill Food Co-op will be open to non-members to shop! It’s going to be an awesome day so come out and have fun! Tell your friends! NEED SOME WORK CREDIT? The event committee could still use some help during the day of the event, pls email outreach@greenehillfood.coop if interested. It will definitely be one of the most fun work shifts!

“WORK OR LOSE” KICKS IN OCTOBER 8TH Work! Don’t lose! Beginning Monday, October 8th we will be implementing our “no shopping for folks who are missing 2+ shifts” policy. Don’t get the boot! Contact work tracking (worktracking@greenehillfood.coop) to ask a question or check on your hours before October 8th.

PRIME THE WALLS – SEPTEMBER 22ND It’s time to prime the wall where the mural will be. On Saturday, September 22, from noon – 6 PM we will be priming the back wall of the Co-op building. Also, there is talk of blending 14 cans of leftover paint into a very special blend we will call “Co-op Brown.” We’ll be cleaning up the surrounding lot on this afternoon too, so bring friends. Get messy! If you have any of the following to loan for the day, we’re collecting these items before noon on the 6th (leave them in the expansion space): 10 Rollers and covers 10, 3 or 4 inch brushes 4, 4-8′ extention poles 2 Ladders 2 five gallon buckets Masking tape Weed Whacker We’d love to see you there. No artistic skills required. Contact Rachel Robbins for details: rrobbins46@gmail.com

MONDAYS, MONDAYS! SHIFT LEADER AND CASHIER SHIFT LEADER TRAINING WORKSHOPS We will be hosting a training session at The Co-op on Tuesday, October 2nd at 7:30 PM, oriented at creating shift leaders for our new Monday hours. The goal is to have these sessions once a month, but this particular session will all be about informing and motivating people to help us get Mondays off the ground. Work credit (and beer) will be provided. Free beer. Are you interested? Please contact membership@greenehillfood.coop

DOCUMENTARY FILMING — SEPT 22ND Visit The Co-op this Saturday and you’ll have a chance to be a part of a French documentary called Collaborative Cities. It’s about “the collaborative economy” — focusing on co-working spaces, ride-sharing, food co-ops, crowd funding etc., and they’re visiting 12 cities across Europe and the US to stockpile footage. The filmmaker, who used to live here, has asked to include The Co-op. We encourage all French native speaking members to show up between 2-4 PM on Saturday the 22nd (really confuse them – ‘we’re in Brooklyn?’) Click on the image of the fabulous Frenchman Maxime Leroy (left), and hear him describe the project in a fabulous French accent.

MARKETING COMMITTEES & THEIR MISSIONS: PLEASE JOIN! The Marketing Committee is looking for a few motivated and outgoing people to join us. Marketing has three small teams, and each team needs your help, especially if you are a graphic designer who understands working within a branding system and know how to use Indesign. The three teams are: PROMO: (chair DK Holland) Mission: We develop all the promotion for the Co-op. We designed and produced the shopping bags and other branded merchandise and work with Outreach and other committees. IN-STORE-SIGNAGE: (chairs Olivia Angelezzi and Thomas Mitchell) Mission: Just like you wish you could improve those signs on I-84, we respond to the needs of our shoppers. How can we make your shopping experience as informed, smooth and streamlined as possible? STRATEGY: (chair Sara Cornish) Mission: We look at the overall communication needs of the Co-op, work with other committees. Sara is in particular looking for a co-chair as she’s now in grad school. Congrats Sara! Please email marketing@greenehillfood.coop if you’ve got the skill set and the interest to join any of these teams, and let us know where you fit in.

NAOMI & NANCYE: CASHIER INTERVIEWS Naomi   Nancye   This week, to drive the point home that we need shift leaders, DK Holland interviewed two terrific members who jumped in when the store opened, committed to working every week as cashiers, and have since evolved to training new cashiers on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Naomi and Nancye…   What made you join The Co-op? NAOMI: My friend Shannon said, “I’m joining. You should join too.” We took the plunge together. NANCYE: I’ve been a member of Park Slope Food Co-op for 10 years so I was very excited when Greene Hill opened. I live about five blocks away. Tell us about your first experience as a cashier leader. NAOMI: I felt like we were in the trenches together. I saw how much everyone was working. The sense that it’s all our responsibility to all run the Co-op sunk in. You are constantly reminded we all work here. NANCYE: I helped out during the Buying Club as a cashier. I realized how important it is to keep the line moving. It looks like you guys are having a good time, I must say, when you’re cashiering. Is it a tight group? NAOMI: Honestly everyone here has such a great attitude. It’s no one’s day job. They show up with such high energy. Also maybe cashiering kind of self selects for happy people? NANCYE: There are always different people cashiering. So I know a lot more people now ­– we see each other on the street. That’s nice. Do you like to cook? NAOMI: I like to experiment. And I like to ask people what they’re going to do with the food they buy. For instance, I’d never seen a raw gherkin in my life. And here were members pickling gherkins. But I’m more of a baker. I like to bake cookies. NANCYE: I do! I have many different kinds of eaters in my household. I pride myself on being able to cook for my husband who’s an omnivore, my son who’s a carnivore and I’m a vegaitarian, without soiling too many pots and pans. What’s your favorite seasonal produce? NAOMI: I was pretty excited by the corn. It was so fresh! NANCYE: I loved the watermelon a lot. And the raw kale for salad – just massage the leaves to break down the fiber and add nuts and stuff. Really delicious.

 

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Your August newsletter is here, just a day or two before it’s officially September. While it’s a lazy time of year, there’s still a lot going on at the Greene Hill Food Co-op. We have new shopping hours (including a fabulous shortened shopping day THIS SATURDAY), a new website design, murals in the works, Co-op board elections coming up, and a grand celebration on tap for Saturday, October 6th. You can also learn how to place a special bulk order for yourself in this newsletter.

While the next General Meeting isn’t until Tuesday, September 18th, there are plenty of ways to get involved and help your Co-op thrive. Read every single word of this newsletter dammit!

HOURS ARE CHANGING

Monday Hours: IF THE WORK SHIFTS FILL UP*, beginning Monday October 8th, the store will be open from 1:30pm until 8pm on Mondays!

Labor Day Weekend: We will be closing at 2pm on Saturday, September 1st. Hours that day will be 10am until 2pm (not 6pm).

Future Saturdays: Shopping will be trimmed a bit beginning Saturday, October 13th — new Saturday hours will be 10am until 4pm.

Thursday Receiving: Will move to Mondays, 8am – 1:30pm, beginning Monday, October 8th.

Sunday Maintenance: New Sunday maintenance shifts from 6-8pm will be added to shift planning beginning Monday, October 8th as well.

*MANIC ABOUT MONDAYS:

We have posted new MONDAY shifts on the shift planning site. In order to proceed with these new extended hours, we will have to have all Monday shifts filled first. Please, help us make our extended shopping hours a success and do what you can to grab some Monday shifts on Columbus Day (October 8th) and beyond. Filling these shifts might require that people work a little extra for a couple of months, bank some extra hours, and help support the store’s progress.

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

It’s that little bit left in summer where you start to ask yourself, what do I have to look forward to this fall? Besides a new school year, the presidential election, and stew, the deadline for Co-op Board nominations is Wednesday, September 5!

Online voting begins Monday, September 10 and runs until Monday, September 17. At the General Meeting on Tuesday, September 18 there will also be a paper ballot voting, tabulation of votes, and the announcement and convening of the new Board.
Want to throw your hat in? Of course you do. Candidates must have been Co-op members for one year or more. Interested candidates should provide a one paragraph blurb on why they are interested and what makes them the most qualified. The President and Vice-President must already be Board members, but Secretary and Treasurer need not be. Floor nominations will be accepted, but those nominated will not be on the ballot during the online phase of voting.

Officers will be elected in October.

Please send nominations, for yourself or another member, to governance@GreeneHillFood.coop

FALL CELEBRATION: OCTOBER 6TH

Greene Hill Food Co-op’s Fall Celebration is coming on Saturday, October 6, from noon to 6pm. Please mark your calendar for this fall celebration and community gathering at Putnam Triangle (on Putnam Avenue between Grand Ave. and Cambridge Pl., just west of the Greene Hill Food Co-op). Music by Sound Liberation Front. Fresh seasonal foods and cooking demonstrations. Fun activities, dancing, and classes from Grow NYC, Shambhala Yoga & Dance Center, and more. New members can bring a t-shirt or bag for on-site silk screening.

We’ll need help the day of the event (tablers, set-up/breakdown crew, food handlers, cashiers), so if you want to volunteer (and get work credit for doing so!), please email outreach@greenehillfood.coop.

NEW WEBSITE

We have reinvisioned our website and we like our new shell. The Website Committee, with the help of Marketing, Outreach, IT, and others at the Co-op, has reconfigured our website in a way that will better serve our 1,000+ Members.

What has changed? With our new design and navigation, the information that you request most is up front on the homepage or can be easily found through the new menu structure. Click here to see a full-size version. In the coming months we will continue to add more content and tweak the layout and design.

As the site goes live in the next few weeks we would greatly appreciate your feedback at webmaster@greenehillfood.coop so that we can ensure that it meets the varying needs of our members. It’s your website too! Any input helps us and helps you. If you have experience with web writing and/or design and want to help out, please contact the Website Committee at webmaster@greenehillfood.coop.

MURAL MEETING

A mural will soon adorn the Fulton-facing wall on the back of our store, and those who care to be involved can attend an upcoming meeting about it. The meeting will take place at 7:30pm on Wednesday, Sept 5th at the Co-op. This will be a planning, logistics, and creative meeting where we start to figure out the timeline, supplies, and content of the mural, as well as what it will mean for the neighborhood and Co-op community.

Please contact Rachel Robbins at rrobbins46@gmail.com if you would like to attend.

SPECIAL BULK ORDERS

Are you an avid canner? Do you go through pounds and pounds of flour because of your undying love for baking? Now you can order products in bulk at the Co-op. Two disclaimers:

1) This is intended for individual member use only, and not for business or third party use.

2) Some products are seasonal and may not be available.

Otherwise, go nuts. Deadlines will be posted for each bulk buying cycle at the store. A down payment of $20 per case / bag of product is due at the time of order. You will be notified via email of the date to pick up your order. Contact Ozzie at specialorders@greenhillfood.coop to request an order or ask a question.

MEET A FELLOW CO-OP MEMBER: JONATHAN

Q: How long does it take you to walk to the Greene Hill Food Co-op from your apartment?

It’s a solid mile, so about 20 minutes.

Q: How do you make a vegan brownie taste good?

By asking my lovely girlfriend to make them for me (she’s the baker of the house!). Don’t over bake em’, make sure they are gooey. They’ll get harder as they cool. We found a pretty simple recipe that only calls for sugar, cocoa, flour, and oil.

Q: What are some products that you buy every time you shop at the Co-op?

We are Udon Crazy! A package of Roland Organic Udon Noodles is $1.67, and makes 4 meals for one and 2 meals for two. Udon is basically Top Ramen for grown ups. It’s really simple to make and doesn’t take time to prepare at all. A dash of your favorite spice is really all you need. We also fry it in sesame oil and onion, which is an extra step but totally worth it. We always stock up on fresh produce too, whatever the co-op is offering.

Q: What are some products you’d like to see us stock in the future?

As far as new products, I would like to see a bigger salsa selection. The stuff we have is ok, but there are a lot of salsas out there, and that’s the one shelf I would love us to expand on. It’s hard to get good salsa in New York.

Q: What instruments do you play?

I play a lot of stuff. Drums and guitar are my two favorite, and I’ve been playing them both for forever. I have a small modest collection of older beat machines and samplers, and I am a huge fan of electronic music. I’ve been obsessed with sampling and making mash-ups as of the past year or so.

Q: How do you distribute the music you create?

You can hear (and download all my music for free) at jonshina.bandcamp.com My music gets past around by word of mouth, so if you like it, feel free to share it! There’s also a short video of when I toured China that might be interesting to watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGkYVUnv7Ao

Q: Do you like sports?

I love playing sports, especially basketball, but I don’t really follow them. Does pinball count as a sport?

Q: What sort of foods do you like to put into your juicer? What sort of foods should you never put into a juicer?

For any juice, carrots and an apple are a must for the base of your juice, after that, you may add anything you’d like! Ginger and lemon are always a must for any juice I make. My girlfriend even likes garlic sometimes in her juice, which can make it savory, but make sure you use only a little bit.

You can’t really juice berries, they just sort of turn into a syrup. Also, very important, if you’re juicing beets, make sure that your beet juice doesn’t exceed more than 1/3 of your juice, or you’ll get sick.

Q: Burger King, Wendy’s, or McDonalds — which has better vegan options?

I despise all fast food (except Taco Bell has a special place in my heart from when I was a kid). My buddy told me that the McDonald’s Apple Pie is 100% vegan, but I’m not in any rush to give it a try.

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