who filed Declarations of Candidacy by April 11, 2008
Michael Ulrich (staff) - 604 votes, elected to a 3 year term
Janie Booth - 734 votes, elected to a 3 year term
Rusell Snyder - 375 votes, elected 2nd Alternate
Stacie Frerichs - 604 votes, elected to a 3 year term
Zach Norwood - 226 votes
Ray Frank - 293 votes
Doreen Pichotti - 602 votes, elected to a 1 year term
Kevin Wolf - 495 votes, elected 1st Alternate
Robert Davis - 242 votes
(Ballot order was determined by a random drawing of names on 4/11/08, by shareholder Yolanda Caesar, with one draw by shareholder Lance Courntey, witnessed by both drawers and shareholder Doug Walter -- all of who work at the Co-op)
The election is over; last day to vote was Wednesday, May 28 at 10 PM!
michaelulrich[at]gmail[dot]com
530-759-8479
The Davis community’s enthusiasm for cooperative values has helped the DFC grow into a vital Davis institution. The Co-op’s comprehensive renovation is a response to this success; with patronage doubling in the last decade and still on the rise, DFC is striving to meet increasing community interest and build on its success as an ethically responsible business. This means we have a lot to live up to.
As a full-time DFC employee in the produce and front-end departments, I experience the growing pangs of the renovation firsthand. I talk to shoppers on a daily basis, sharing both kudos and concerns—elation at the availability of new foods and more accommodating displays, worries that the Co-op is becoming too extravagant or expensive. I believe the Co-op can maintain and even fortify its values and offerings to the community during and beyond the renovation, and I will ensure that any and all board revisions to Co-op policies strengthen DFC’s mission.
In our culture, we exercise our democracy as much in the supermarket as in the polling booth. I will help ensure that the Co-op continues to offer distinctive votes, with options and atmosphere that are meaningfully different from those offered by mainstream grocery stores. I advocate increasing educational information about products to improve members’ ability to make informed choices. In the produce department, I’m already working with fellow staff to introduce food narratives into the shopping experience. These food stories go beyond labels like “natural” and “organic” to connect us more deeply to our food and the people behind it. Complementary measures can strengthen DFC’s partnerships with local farms, businesses, and campus and community organizations. I will encourage exploring all options for running as sustainable a store as possible: reducing waste, saving energy, and increasing community-based products on our shelves. I will make sure management pursues such efforts, which are indispensable for an ethically-minded grocery store.
I ask for your vote to help ensure that, renovation and
beyond, DFC embodies the original Cooperative idea: to leverage our
resources toward our shared values of health, community and ecological
responsibility.
janiebooth[at]gmail[dot]com
Let’s
do more together!
I
am running for the Board of Directors for the second year in a row.
Last year, I was elected as the first alternate Board member. In this
position, I attended Board meetings and retreats and voted on
resolutions during meetings when a regular Director was absent. I have
attended every single meeting thus far, and have voted on the majority
of Board resolutions. In February, I became a full-time Board member in
order to fill a position vacancy. I was also appointed the official
Board treasurer.
I have learned a great deal in the past year
and I have the motivation, enthusiasm and experience to represent and
work tirelessly on behalf of the DFC membership and the organization as
a whole. I am currently the head of the Renovation Task Force (Boundary
Policy B11: Store Expansion and/or Renovation), charged with providing
updates to the Board regarding the progression of the comprehensive
store remodel that is underway. I have been conducting monthly meetings
with General Manager Eric Stromberg, and providing reports to the Board
regarding a number of topics. My reports cover the budgetary status of
the project, the timeline, evolving design challenges, and safety
issues associated with this large undertaking. In the process, I have
worked with the Board to revise the B11 policy to more accurately
address issues that should be monitored during current and future store
remodeling efforts. For example, the revised B11 policy stipulates that
all general contractors working on the store must provide a
comprehensive recycling and reuse plan for construction waste.
In
my professional life, I work with my husband at our local solar energy
engineering business. In 2007, our company was integral in the design
and planning for more than 15 Megawatts of installed photovoltaic
projects in the United States. As a Davis resident, parent, small
business owner, and deeply committed DFC member-owner, I ask for your
vote in this election so that I may continue and expand my work with
the Board of Directors.
russellsnyder[at]sbcglobal[dot]net
530-756-0524
When I’m hosting out-of-towners, the Davis Food Co-Op is on a short list of places I take them to show them what makes Davis such a special place to live. It’s a local treasure.
I fear, however, that the Co-Op in recent years has become complacent -- as if it’s somehow immune to the dramatic changes sweeping through the grocery business. It isn’t.
The Davis Food Co-Op, now a mature concern, must adapt a more businesslike approach to its operations, while continuing to stay true to its co-op heritage. There must be a renewed emphasis on memorable customer service, competent management and fiscal accountability.
For the remodel, the past board regretfully incurred
over $6
million in debt service to a foreign-owned bank. I want to reduce that
enormous debt by raising member capital and paying that $2 million in
interest to our members.
The Co-Op must also look carefully at expansion opportunities, such as
the vacant storefront in an underserved West Davis neighborhood.
“Think globally, shop locally” is more than a
slogan.
I believe I have the blend of relevant experience that will help the Co-Op adapt and thrive as a valuable community resource. A Davis resident since 1996, I hold a BA from Pepperdine University and worked in the news business, reporting on national and world affairs. My college education was paid for with scholarship, sweat, and a steady paycheck from my supermarket job at Lucky, where I worked for seven years as a journeyman clerk, assistant manager and warehouse manager. I know the grocery business from the ground up.
Recently, I have worked as an executive for the State of
California and as a lobbyist and business consultant. I’m
also
past president of the Stonegate Homeowners Association. If my name
sounds familiar to you, it’s probably because I ran for Davis
City Council in 2002 and spent many evenings meeting voters in front of
the Co-Op. I believe I bring a blend of business acumen and passion for
the Co-Op ideals. I respectfully ask for your vote.
staciefrerichs[at]yahoo[dot]com
Hello fellow Davis Food Co-op Owners! I am asking you to vote for me in the 2008 Board of Directors Election. I have been a shareholder and/or household member of the Co-op since 1999. I attribute my conversion from eating mostly processed conventional foods to a healthful, local, and organic diet as a direct result of the Co-op. I also believe that the Co-op is an anchor in our community and will be ever more important as our world deals with climate change and food security issues. I am grateful to those who have laid the groundwork for Co-op in years past and helped create its current strong market position in Davis. I am also thankful for you all as shareholders for believing in and supporting the Co-op with your food dollars. I am running for the Board in order to represent you as members, to support a strong community anchor, and to ensure that the Co-op decisions are fiscally responsible.
To help support these goals, I will draw on my experiences as a:
• Current elected management committee member of the local group of the Sierra Club and my experience in community organizing, fundraising, and representing those who elect me.
• Current past Chair of the City of Davis Natural Resources Commission and my experiences with meeting facilitation and rules of order.
• Current member of the City of Davis’ Climate Action Team working on community actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase our sustainability as a community.
• Working professional who for my career has experience in managing the financial aspects of the clean up of contaminated and polluted groundwater sites.
• Member-Owner and long-time customer of the Co-op.
• Subscriber to two, local Community Supported Agriculture boxes and a strong supporter of the family farms that produce the vegetables, fruit, and grains which sustain my family.
Thank you for reading my statement, I would greatly appreciate your vote.
zach[at]confutation[dot]com
Erich Fromm’s To Have or to Be, written in 1974, foretold the chilling psychological effects of unconscious consumerism. His basic argument goes like this: if we live according to “having,” then our sense of security, our very identity, becomes outwardly, materially fixated. If on the other hand we live according to “being,” then our sense of security and identity remain inwardly focused, and our spiritual and intellectual developments become the basis of worth.
Having therefore subjects us to the mores of possession and loss, while Being anchors life in what’s readily given, the raw experience of human connectedness.
I think Fromm’s views, though in some respects outdated, are just as relevant today as they were thirty years ago. We live in a time of ever-increasing corporate expansion, and our consumerist habits show little sign of slowing, despite our economic downturn. We’ve witnessed the pressures of market competition locally, too. The Co-op expansion was partially predicated on fears of encroaching competition, such as from Trader Joe’s and Nugget.
I voted for the expansion, under the spell of ‘keeping up with the times.’ Now I question my decision. I question whether we really must have such an astonishing variety of imported olives, wines, beers, cheeses, confections, and costly kitchen knickknacks; whether we really need a whole isle dedicated to the latest fads in “alternative medicine”—the placebos, nocebos, and nostrums we’re all so dogmatically fond of.
So now I wonder: Does our collective, whimsical demand necessitate proportional supply? I myself prefer imported beers to local alternatives, my favorite cheese is from Amsterdam, and I take for granted that I can purchase bananas year-round. But what are the global ramifications of my local consumption? I curb my more extravagant appetites, but I continue buying things I don’t really need.
As a board member, I’d like to see if I can’t transform my own unconscious consumerist habits into educated, ethical decisions about what’s best for everyday well-Being, not well-Having. Then, with sustained, collective education and membership engagement, I will work towards making the Co-op a more conscious consumerist venue for us all.
ray{at}muircommons{dot}org
My name is Ray Frank and I’m asking for your vote for a seat on the Davis Food Coop Board of Directors.
I live in cooperative housing here in Davis and have a life long interest in the cooperative movement since first learning about it in the 1950s. Over the last 35 years I’ve owned small businesses and I’m a member of the board of directors of a music camp.
I love to cook and feel grateful to have access to such a wonderful institution which supplies us with fresh, top quality, organic, local produce at the best prices possible. I would like to strengthen ties to our Yolo County organic farmers.
The Coop, like any other business, must have a balance between its daily working needs and its vision, goals, and plans. The Board of Directors is the body that listens to the ideas and concerns of the membership and turns your ideas into concrete, measurable, attainable goals.
The expansion is proceeding well and the financing for it might be handled even better. Alternative funding needs to be more thoroughly explored which could lessen our tax burden, help to pay down some of the huge interest payments and keep the cost of your groceries down.
One of the jobs of the Board is long term planning and I
look forward to assisting in the process.
doreen{dot}pichotti{at}ucdmc{dot}ucdavis{dot}edu
As an 18-year member of the Co-op and 3-year Director, I have learned a tremendous amount. It takes at least a year to learn some of the major elements of being a director such as policy governance, Roberts Rules, bylaws, finances, etc. In that time, the Co-op has invested a lot in me and I in them. If elected for another 3 years, I know I can be even more effective.During my current term, I was instrumental in establishing our first food values statement which will help ensure high-quality, local, organic food options in our store and environmentally sustainable practices. I envisioned and implemented the move to conduct the annual member meeting alongside the Farmers Market which resulted in substantially higher attendance and has been repeated every year since. I was part of the team that oversaw the renewal of the General Manager contract and the development of the store renovation plan.
In the future, I hope to continue to work hard toward maintaining healthy options for our community but only if that’s what members want. I’ve learned that a Director must do what’s in the best interest of the Co-op, not personal or special interests. To that end, if re-elected, I will work to create methods that will help us better understand our members needs and wants. Specifically, I would like to create an online, virtual Co-op community that would include elements such as online surveys, chat rooms, e-newsletter, etc. that will make it easier for members to express their opinions.
Regarding my practical skills, I have two Masters degrees: one in Health Services Administration and one in Mathematics. I currently work at UC Davis Medical Center handling our advertising in TV, radio, print, online, etc. In 2001 and 2002, I was on the Whole Earth Festival staff as dance coordinator and fund developer. I am an excellent team worker, respect other’s opinions and have a lot of creative energy
It’s an honor to be among such dedicated talented people at the Co-op and I hope to continue.
530-758-4211
kevin(at)wolfandassociates(dot)com
In a few years, Davis Food Co-op annual sales should exceed $20 million with a gross margin over $6 million. We have over 8000 member households and 100 staff. These resources can do much more for our members, staff, community, region and even our planet.
The DFC needs a board with a compelling vision, clear goals and objectives and the skills and experience to achieve them. I was the board president when we decided to move from the storefront on L Street to our present location. During my six years on the board, the co-op grew such that soon after I left, we were able to buy the building. I have a lot of experience and success at helping grow businesses and organizations, including N Street Cohousing where I live.
I am running for the board again because I want to help the co-op realize its potential as our society faces disruptive and dire problems from global warming, recession, and Peak Oil. With new board members, DFC’s resources, member loyalty and staff energy can be better utilized to:
• Increase the amount of locally produced food and products we sell, circulate more money locally, and decrease the distance products travel.
• Grow by opening small stores that decrease the need to drive cars, that strengthen local neighborhoods and that provide opportunities for new management experience among staff. To start, we should explore if we can profitably open a satellite store on Westlake Blvd.
• Improve member education. For example, our website should be a better resource for our members and vision.
• Better tap member energy and skills to advance our mission and goals.
The existing board failed to seek member capital for the remodel and ended up taking a loan of $3.9 million from a foreign bank. The board admits it broke DFC rules in spending co-op funds to electioneer for the remodel. A new board majority is needed that can create the strategic plans and adhere to the values that will help our co-op reach its tremendous potential. I pledge to do my best to help with this.
robbathome{at}gmail{dot}com
The Davis Food Co-op is a critical resource of the entire Davis community and embodies values that we must cultivate as we move into the future. It provides an alternative to wasteful food packaging, the soulless and extractive food industry, the impersonal corporate structures that control too much of our food production system and the movement away from local control of food resources. While it is not perfect the DFC reflects our aspiration for things like sustainable agriculture, less processed and more nutritional food and products produced closer to home.
As a board member I will provide strategic leadership to a capable and professional staff so that our collective aspirations can be realized and so the DFC can become a platform and resource for greater community action for life enhancing and humanizing actions.
I have over 20 years of experience in grassroots community health programs focused on the nutritional needs of women and children in economically poorer nations around the world. I have helped to start, and served as chair of the board of, a child health-focused member run non-profit and served on the board of a microfinance promoting agency working with banking cooperatives around the world.
As a board member I will work to assure
1.That member concerns and needs are fed directly into board decision
making processes and the strategic ends the board sets for staff
2.That the DFC increases the selection and variety of locally produced
foods offered to reduce the distance food must travel to our shelves
3.That the DFC lead the way in providing Davisites with the option of
shopping for high quality and affordable food in their
neighborhoods—particularly in the west part of town that is
without a food store at this time
4.That the DFC solicit and use member resources—time, money
and
talents—to enhance DFC community nutrition and lifestyle
educational efforts and to build local shopping alternatives
If elected I will use my experience to provide strategic leadership and a clear vision of our collective future to the DFC.
D.F.C. Statement of Campaign Policy
FREEDOM TO SPEAK
BALANCED WITH FREEDOM TO SHOP.
Politics is a sensitive subject. It should not be allowed to interfere
with the work that needs to be done in the store. Everyone's views
should be presented as fairly as possible. Shoppers in the store should
not be pressured. Therefore our policy is that no campaigning may be
done in the store.
Whenever you are in the store, and any time you are scheduled and/or
paid to work, whether as a member or as an employee, please restrict
your discussion of Co-op politics and the election to: (1) informing
members where they may get information about candidates and issues; (2)
informing members of the procedures for voting; (3) encouraging
shareholders to vote.
CAMPAIGNING
INSIDE/OUTSIDE THE STORE. Everyone may discuss his/her own
opinions outside the store, outside of working hours.
Information on candidates and their views, propositions, issues, and
commentary, can be found in the designated election displays at the
entrances to the store and/or in the hallways outside the bathroom or
office. These are the only areas where such information may be posted
or left for members to take. Space is provided for comments.
No one may engage in leafleting, petitioning or soliciting within the
store proper. Soliciting means being present for the purpose of
striking up election discussions with members and attempting to
convince them to vote in a certain way. Casual discussions relating to
the election among people who are in the store for other purposes do
not constitute soliciting.
Leafleting, petitioning or soliciting outside the store on Co-op
property shall be subject to reasonable regulation, as are other free
speech activities. Free speech activities related to Co-op elections
and policies shall be given general — although not absolute
— priority over other speech.
IN STORE PUBLICITY.
Bulletin board space will be made available to the candidates and for
Bylaws amendments, propositions, and the arguments related to these.
Space will be provided for endorsements and member opinions on the
candidates and election issues. Campaigning procedures will also be
publicized in the store.
CO-OP ELECTRONIC
RESOURCES.
The Voter's Pamphlet and other information about the Co-op election
shall be made available electronically. If endorsements, opinions and
comments are delivered electronically, then a reasonable effort will be
made to reproduce them.
CO-OP NEWSLETTER
AND CO-OP ELECTIONS.
Endorsements will not be printed in the Co-op newsletter. The
newsletter is not published frequently enough to allow timely response
to subjects raised. Such endorsements may be placed on the election
display. A notice will be published in the newsletter that any
endorsements received will be posted on the election display.
USE OF MAILING LISTS.
The
Board will direct staff to grant to candidates, or proponents or
opponents of ballot issues, access to the Co-op's mailing list in
conformance with California Corporations Code Sec. 12600. Mailing
material to the membership for such a person shall be at that
person’s expense.
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