Question of the Week for December 12: What types of extracurricular (non-grocery) activities might the Co-op sponsor that would be of interest to you? (member-generated question)

A Sampling of Member Answers
- I think the CO-op should be a grocery store-period. I resent having my money go to causes I have not chosen.
- I’d be interested in sustainability presentations/workshops – both general and specific to the Co-op’s initiatives. Thanks!
- Electric power co-op purchase. Home and auto insurance group purchase!
- Is there ANY aspect of food that you guys HAVEN’T explored yet? You’ve used ethic food elements in your mini-festivals. How about if, through a year’s time, you presented some of the best festivals you’ve done before but with different twists. A multicultural hoopla given world holidays in our polyglot society, with decor and foods related, along with recipes to allow folks to integrate the foods into their home cuisine using Co-op merchandise? Hogmanay with haggis; Chinese New Year with Mandarin and Szechuan dishes; Cinco de Mayo with Mexican dishes; Diwali with Indian dishes; etc. Asking members who hail from other cultures to step forth and offer info on cultural favorites could include others in planning and not make the notion so work-intensive for the staff.
- As you’ve done things like this in the past, let it go on record that I’ve appreciated them wholeheartedly. The vigor and creativity of the Co-op keeps us coming back after 40 years. The friendliness and sense of humor of Co-op staff makes it fun to go shopping for food. The color & life in the stores even on average, non-festival days turns doing an errand into—dare I say it?—almost a party, for me.
- How about proper eating seminars – learn how to use the co-op to eat low-carb, or gluten free, etc? A nutritionist seminar once monthly would be a great feature. Commercial grocery stores never do this because it is in their interest to sell high value items that are often devoid of nutritional value.