From the editor
by Rosemary Fifield

Dear Reader,

Like millions of Americans, Co-op members and staff responded to the events of September 11 by looking for ways to help the victims of the destruction in New York City and Washington, D.C. At the suggestion of one of our Front End supervisors, we placed collection boxes at all four Co-op retail locations, and the response from our shoppers was immediate and gratifying. We sent $4,560 in collected monies to the American Red Cross relief effort, including a few individual personal checks of several hundred dollars each. We thank all of our generous shoppers and staff for their contributions.

As an organization, the Co-op responded by contributing food and merchandise to local groups raising money for disaster relief and by supporting blood drawing at Alice Peck Day Hospital with beverages. When a local massage therapist received permission to go to Ground Zero to offer free massages to rescue personnel for two days, we were pleased to be able to supply items from our health care products.

We know from experience and observation that Co-op members, shoppers, and staff form a unique community of people who care about one another. To our knowledge, no Co-op staff member has experienced personal loss of family or friends in the attacks. While we would like to believe that is true for all of our members and shoppers as well, we know that is not the case, and we offer heartfelt sympathy to those of you who have lost a loved one. To our members and shoppers who might be suffering discrimination because of cultural differences, we wish you and your families safety and peace of mind.

As we move into the holiday season, many of us will find our greatest contentment in simply being with family and friends in a quiet, secure place where we can enjoy the basic pleasures of good food and warm camaraderie. It will be a time to cherish one another’s presence, to share memories of good times from holidays past, and to seek ways to work toward a future where all people can share the earth in peace and prosperity.

The holiday season is a time for giving, and while many have given generously to the relief efforts in New York City and Washington, D.C., we also need to remember the many local non-profit organizations that serve the needy members of our own community. Free medical and dental clinics, food banks, and other health and human service providers need our help as much as—or perhaps more than—ever. Please remember them in your gifts.

You can also support local non-profits by donating to the Co-op’s new Community Fund. Raffle tickets are being sold in the stores until December 1 for prizes of gift-giving quality, with the proceeds going to the Fund. Check at the Service Desk in either food store for more information.

From all of us at the Co-op to all of you, best wishes for a healthy and peaceful holiday season.

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