Who Will Be 650?
Owner 650, we can't wait to meet ya!
Many of you are already on board with our vision of a community-owned grocery store.
- You've completed surveys
- You've supported us at community events
- You've told others about us
- You've donated
- You've volunteered
- 649 of you OWN IT and, most importantly, YOU GET IT!
You know that it takes a WHOLE community to come together to have more control over our local food system. You are the proud owners and supporters, considered the early adopters who have faith in our movement before our physical doors have even opened!
You also know that it takes at least 800 of us to get to our next stage: officially securing our location.
So, who's our next proud owner? Who will be the next to get us that much closer to making our well-planned, strategic dream a full-fledged reality?
Will it be you?
If you're already an owner, great! But, don't forget we offer Gift Ownership for your special someone! Make it extra special for their 65th birthday or June 5th b-day or anniversary by giving the gift of the 650th owner of the Food Shed Co-op.
The first to sign up as owner 650 will get two FREE tickets ($30 value) to the upcoming Inspired Living Expo on April 6th and 7th! You won't want to miss this exciting expo, with more than 95 booths displaying various positive health & wellness, holistic, animal, and environmental products and services. The expo will also feature demonstrations, presentations, lectures, live music, and a free showing of the film Heal.
Keep in mind, we also offer a Monthly Payment Plan for just $21/month and a Financial Assistance Fund for those who want to be owners but need a little help.
Please visit our website for more details.
Conversations Continue
Hang in there, grasshoppers, we are still in talks with McHenry County College, with a meeting scheduled in March to further discuss our partnership possibilities! In the meantime, stay patient and engaged in our community - we are GROWING strong, with new and exciting updates and events on the horizon! (Did we mention Goat Yoga?)
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New Year + New Faces + Hopeful New Spaces!
An Exciting Year in Review!
We've had an exciting year here at the Food Shed, from Goat Yoga sessions to successful fundraisers, winning contests, fabulous outreach events, fun-filled co-op community nights and parties, the addition of more than three dozen new owners to our community, the start of a great relationship with McHenry County College, and an amazing year-end holiday celebration!
Thank You
The Food Shed community is made up of many socially-conscious owners, local businesses, supporters and volunteers who've generously given their time and donations throughout the past year. Here are a few highlights of our community's generosity in 2018:
- More than 500 pounds of food donated to food pantries all over McHenry County, thanks to holiday party attendees’ donations and local farms who donated to the Empty Bowls fundraiser at MCC!
- Our $200 Founding Owner holiday party winner donated her prize back to the Food Shed Co-op!
- Dozens of Food Shed owners and supporters volunteered their time at more than 35 outreach events, including helping nonprofit organizations like McHenry County PADS (Public Action to Deliver Shelter), committee meetings, board meetings, and administrative work (thank you Pam for your newsletter proofreading and copyediting!)
- More than 400 Food Shed community owners and supporters took the time to complete our important Store Vision Survey!
- More than 50 Food Shed owners & local business supporters donated local food, products, and services multiple times and made our special events even more special!
All of you made this past year memorable, while paving the way for new developments in 2019!
Let's keep the momentum going in this new year by continuing to tell our friends and neighbors about the Food Shed Co-op. Let them know the benefits of building our community-owned grocery store - a store that's sure to be full of great local food, smiling faces, and many years of meaningful experiences!
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Holiday - Celebrate - Let's Get To Eight!
Holiday - Celebrate - Let's Get to Eight!
Treat Yourself This Holiday: OWN It!
Join us Sunday afternoon, December 9th, from 2:00pm to 5:00pm for the most wonderful time of the year at Duke's Alehouse & Kitchen. Enjoy delicious appetizers, drinks (cash bar), raffle prizes, silent auction and live music with local musician Julie Gibson, while catching up with your Food Shed friends! Holiday Party Tickets are $15 and must be purchased in advance, on our website Event page.
If you've been thinking about becoming an owner of a grocery store that will offer more locally-sourced, nutritional food products, now's the time! You'll be welcoming a new year soon, and be that much closer to helping get YOUR grocery store open for business!
All new owners will receive a FREE Food Shed Co-op T-shirt, yard sign, and bumper sticker, so you can start showing everyone your co-op pride!
Chance to Win $200!
We’re offering any new owner who signs up from TODAY up until party time on Sunday, December 9th at 4pm to have their name entered into a raffle to win $200! That’s the value of a Founding Owner membership!
Invite Friends to Become Owners!
Bring 'em to the party! In fact, bring everyone you know who's ready to sign up and become Food Shed Co-op Owners! Now is a great time to celebrate and wrap up an amazing year of getting closer to opening our store. But we need to reach our goals to make that happen. Our next goal: 800 owners before the end of the year!
Give the Gift of Ownership!
It's the perfect time of year to purchase Food Shed Co-op ownerships as a gift for a friend or loved one. If you bring a non-owner to sign up, you'll get an extra raffle ticket!
Silent Auction + Raffle Prizes!
Don't miss out on your chance to win fun, delicious, and relaxing raffle prizes from local merchants, including multiple high-value gift baskets, Terra Vitae Farms gift pack, Golf for 4 with Golf Cart at Chalet Hills Golf Club in Cary, Jewelry from Triskele Moon, Fused Glass Art Classes from Glassworks by Kim, Massage Therapy Gift Certificate from Tarja Anchor, Riverbottom Ice Cream gift cards, and more.
Canned Food Drive!
We'll also be collecting quality canned goods to be donated to the Crystal Lake Food Pantry and the Woodstock Food Pantry. Please contribute if you can and help those in our community who are food insecure this season.
NOTE: Holiday Party Tickets are $15 and must be purchased in advance on our website Event page. Increase your chance of winning prizes by purchasing additional raffle tickets at the party! A cash bar will be available at an additional cost.
Exciting Next Steps!
Since making our proposal to McHenry County College's Board of Trustees in August, we continue to receive positive feedback from their board, the MCC community, Food Shed owners, and our surrounding local community in pursuing this path to plant our store.
In fact, we have continued our conversations with the MCC leadership team during the past month and will keep you updated with any new developments in the near future.
We're optimistic about this direction for our location, which brings us to our next stage of success: We need 800 owners to secure our site. Though we've grown to 631 proud owners, we’ll need more Food Shed Co-op owners and money to successfully come into this next phase and announce our home base for our cooperative grocery store.
WE CAN DO IT, just like hundreds of other co-ops across the nation who have successfully gone before us! Here's an infographic to help visualize our exciting next steps:
Food Shed's Stages of Success Roadmap
(Disclaimer: Infographic is tentative and may be subject to change)
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