From the GM: MFC’s Cooperative Community Fund

by Anne Carter – General Manager

In 2017, we created the Medford Food Co-op Cooperative Community Fund (MCCF) as a permanent endowment within the Twin Pines Cooperative Foundation. Money contributed to our fund by our Co-op, our suppliers, and our owners will grow the fund. As the fund earns interest annually, the Co-op will donate the earned interest to local non-profits.

We decided to link our Cooperative Community Fund (CCF) donations to our existing Positive Change program, because the Positive Change program already has an application and selection process that involves both staff and owners. The Board of Directors will select one Positive Change recipient each year to receive an additional donation from the CCF. This allows us to designate worthy recipients without setting up an additional application and screening process.

Since its creation in 2017, our CCF earned $624 in interest. The Board selected UNETE’s Immigrant Fire Relief Fund to receive the first donation from our CCF.

Despite the crises of 2020, we decided to make an end-of-the-year contribution to our CCF by linking it to the $100 gift card for $90 promotion throughout the holiday season. Co-op shoppers purchased a total of 394 $100 gift cards! The Co-op will match the $10 savings per gift card and contribute $3,940 to our CCF. Thank you to all of the owners and shoppers who participated in this promotion.

Our CCF is not only a permanent endowment that will allow us to support local organizations; the funds are pooled together with the Cooperative Community Funds of 44 food co-ops across the United States into a family of funds managed by the Twin Pines Cooperative Foundation (TPCF). In their 2019 Annual Report, TPCF reported combined assets of over $4 million invested in the development of cooperatives. These investments leveraged $48 million for co-op development nationwide.

We are proud to be a part of this larger cooperative effort that has a positive impact on our local community and the national cooperative movement. It’s another way we carry out two of our core values, Cooperative Principle #6 - Cooperation among Cooperatives and Cooperative Principle #7 – Concern for Community.