Annual Meeting 2023 Summary
Our first annual meeting, November 14 at the Watertown Free Public Library was a major milestone on our path to opening a new store. About 46 co-op members and others enjoyed cookies and seltzers before sitting down to be welcomed by board president Nick Quaranto. The presentation was also presented in a live zoom session for those who could not attend in person.
The entire meeting can be viewed here. And you can find the slide deck here: 2023 Annual Meeting Slide Deck.
Nick’s introduction was followed by the board election results, with thanks to outgoing board members Thomas Michel, Lew Berk, Lissa Gilbert, Benny Lee, Jen Kaplan. 193 (25%) of our members voted. 3 top vote getters, Allison Filler, Joelle Sugianto, and Kathryn Loup, will serve a 3 year term. The other 2, Scott Shurr and Sonya Green, will serve 2 years. Our current board consists of Nick Quaranto, president, Melissa Appel, vice-president, Tim Snyder, clerk, and Christina Beck, Allison Filler, Joelle Sugianto, Kathryn Loup, Scott Shurr, Sonya Green, directors.
We’ve reached stage one of the path to opening, which is organizing. Milestones achieved are to organize and hold community meetings, incorporate the organization, kick off ownership drive, hold first annual meeting, elect first Board Of Directors, and conduct preliminary feasibility studies. Next up is feasibility, including complete initial marketing study, initiate site search, complete financial pro forma, and begin search for general manager.
Committee updates began with Joelle, head of our Marketing Committee. This group is dedicated to increasing awareness of the organization, educating community members, and building a community presence.
Kathryn Loup reported on the Finance / Biz Dev committee. This group is responsible for the budget, which the board has approved for FY24, tax responsibilities, and monitoring financial feasibility. Over the past year they created an RFP for the market study, and selected and hired one of the firms who responded to it. Next steps include helping with site selection, and fundraising.
Allison Filler was up next, with a report on progress of our Solidarity Shares program. This initiative is intended to allow people of all income levels to become co-op members. Details of how to subsidize the membership fees have yet to be worked out, but the committee is hard at work on it.
A highlight of the meeting was a photo history of the recently opened Dorchester Food Co-op, narrated by guest speakers Robin Saunders and Jenny Silverman. Their journey, which began in 2011, is a monument to teamwork and perseverance. They created a lot of projects which raised public awareness and funds, and gradually built up their membership until they were able to open their store.
Nick returned to the podium to tell everyone how to join the co-op or join a committee. Lots of volunteer opportunities are available. A question and answer session followed.
Darnell Adams, a board member of the Food Co-op Initiative and former project manager for the Dorchester co-op, came up to add some closing words. She noted that we are in a good place, with members recruited among those who miss Russos. It was good to hear her encouraging words.
The entire meeting can be viewed here. And you can find the slide deck here: 2023 Annual Meeting Slide Deck.
