Greetings from the Co-op! It’s hard to believe we are approaching six months of living (and grocery shopping) through a pandemic. Let me express some heartfelt appreciation to everyone—our Co-op staff, suppliers, members, customers, and the broader community—for helping to protect our safety. Our combined efforts to maintain distancing, wear facial coverings, and follow all of the safety guidance are making an admirable difference for people’s health and quality of life.

And still we need to remain vigilant. We are all weary of these new limitations and look forward to returning to the way things used to be, but now is the right time to renew our commitment to safety. As cooler weather approaches, we need to maintain and enhance the practices that have protected us so far. In addition to our long-standing Shopper Code of Conduct, here are some of the best things we can all do:

• Shop intentionally. Plan your weekly visits to avoid extra trips and shop for others if that works for you.
• Wear your facial covering over nose and mouth at all times when in the Co-op and outside when in the vicinity of others. Per the Governor’s latest executive order regarding masks, we ask that customers wear one while in line waiting to enter the store.
• Try our Curbside Pick-Up program. We currently offer 1,600 different products and are adding dozens of new items every week. We are working hard to make the experience as easy, convenient,and safe as possible.
• Maybe most importantly, lets all be patient and kind to one another. We see signs of anxiety and fatigue every day. This is understandable given the stress and many unknowns we are all facing. Simple acts of kindness can make a huge difference for those of us having a hard time, which could be any one of us at any moment.

For our part as employees, we continue to prioritize the safety of shoppers and each other. As we fine-tune the systems we created early on, we have begun to focus on planning for Thanksgiving and the December holidays. Our goal is to provide safe shopping experiences while meeting the community’s need for these critical celebrations. Look for more information on safe holiday shopping later this fall.

Together, we have been successful so far in protecting health and maintaining a fair degree of normalcy through this pandemic. Together, each contributing to each other’s safety, we will make it through with our community strength and values intact. Thank you for your contributions.

Kari Bradley, General Manager