By: Kristin Evenrud, Human Resource Manager
As with most things in 2020, our Round Up at the Register campaigns did not go quite as expected. We originally intended to hold one Round Up campaign per quarter – as we did in 2019. When COVID-19 hit and we closed the doors of the Co-op to customer foot traffic, this greatly diminished the feasibility of such a campaign. For this reason, we postponed the Round Up campaign for quarter two until after our doors were back open to the public.
We re-launched the Round Up campaigning in quarter three and realized there was an enormous pool of organizations that had applied for consideration of these funds. In order to maximize our impact and spread it among as many organizations as possible, we decided to include a Round Up campaign each month for the remainder of the year.
So far in 2020 we have completed Round Up campaigns for Feed Iowa First, Northeast Iowa Peace and Justice Center, and the Sustainable Iowa Land Trust (SILT). Here is a little bit of information about each of these organizations.
Feed Iowa First – An organization based out of Cedar Rapids that was hit hard by the derecho. The impact to their organization was twofold, their growing buildings were damaged and there was an increased need in the community for food. To learn more about Feed Iowa First, check out their website: https://www.feediowa1st.com/.
Northeast Iowa Peace and Justice Center (NEIPJC) – Based out of Decorah, NEIPJC works to promote non-violent solutions to social, economic and environmental injustices. “Action-oriented work is the heartbeat of Northeast Iowa Peace & Justice Center. We seek to engage a diverse community body in our efforts toward equity, equality, justice and peace.” To learn more about Northeast Iowa Peace and Justice Center, check out their website: https://neipjc.org/.
Sustainable Iowa Land Trust (SILT) – Their mission is “To permanently protect Iowa land to grow nature-friendly table food.” Their model takes land speculation and mortgage interest out of the equation for future healthy food farmers. To learn more about SILT, check out their website: https://silt.org/.
In November we will Round Up for the Winneshiek County Food Pantries and in December we will Round Up for Cycling Without Age.
Round Up 2021 and Beyond
In 2021 we will continue to host Round Up campaigns once per month for a length of roughly two weeks. We encourage organizations to fill out an application on our website to be considered as a recipient of Round Up funds. (https://oneotacoop.com/about-us/community/)
Round Up campaigns are a way for the Co-op to further its mission within the community. Round Up recipients must meet the criteria of being a non-profit as well as alignment with the Mission and Ends of the Co-op. We are thrilled to help support the community in this way.
MISSION STATEMENT: The mission of the Oneota Community Co-op is to build vibrant communities and ecosystems by providing organic, locally produced and bulk foods, as well as other products and services that are sustainable for those who consume and produce them.
CONNECTING LANGUAGE: In pursuit of this Mission the Board of Directors has approved the following Ends statements:
ORGANIZATIONAL ENDS: Because the Oneota Community Co-op exists as an institution grounded in the cooperative principles, there will be the following:
- A retail source for food and other products that, to the greatest extent possible, are organic, sustainably produced, locally grown and/or processed, and affordable. A business that encourages the expansion of sustainably grown local food sources.
- A community that is educated about food and other products that are healthy for people and the environment.
- A business that promotes the development of cooperation and cooperative enterprise.
- A business that promotes environmental and financial sustainability.
- Employment in a workplace that provides the personal satisfaction of collaborative work directed toward common goals and provides extraordinary customer service.
- A diverse, local community whose fabric is strengthened through caring, and sharing gifts of time, energy, and resources.
