Dear Deep Roots Community,

I just wanted to take a few moments to reflect on freedom and what that means in the world of cooperation. As an Anthropologist, I have always been aware of the lack of freedom for so many people, especially in our food systems. I chose to become a Cooperator as a way to help fight against those injustices and to push our culture to make better choices. I love that Deep Roots is committed to only carry Fair Trade chocolate, palm oil, and coffee (just to name a few), and some of the biggest slave-based industries on the planet. Check out your personal impact {Slavery Footprint Survey}. I love how food co-ops basically exist as a model for how we can all live our best lives and hurt no one in the process. It is why we created the {Tap Roots Program} (scroll down this page to learn more). I wanted to create a guide and incentive to get our community to vote with their food dollars. We are making a difference. Yay!

Hey, you guys raised $1,466.15 in June for the East White Oak Community Center through our Round-Up Program. Bravo!

I am thrilled to announce that our beloved Community Room is now back open and ready for you to book {Community Room}. The break was good for us to be able to solve some issues that we were having with bookings, and the space was also utilized for some programs that served the immunocompromised, the ill and the elderly who were shut in over the past year. We worked with Cone Health’s Triad Health Network to prepare food boxes to be delivered and Deep Roots Volunteers who shopped for customers. Those programs will continue, but with a lower volume now. You will now find a small booking fee. This fee is only to combat the overbooking and no showing that was starting to snowball pre-pandemic. It also covers the labor involved in keeping up with the administration of those bookings.

You may notice some changes in the store and we hope that you like them. Bear with us as we get through it and please ask if you can’t find your favs. They might have been moved. We are expanding fresh food options through the Deli and the Ready Roots Program. Smoothies are next on the list. Also, we have been working hard to bring you the best that we have access to and developing systems that make our operations smoother. I am currently doing a wage analysis so that your staff are receiving fair and competitive wages too. This is something that I have wanted to do since I started this work. Did you know that our full-time staff get free basic medical health coverage? Yay!

Summer is a great time for dreaming up new potential for your Co-op, gathering with loved ones, spending time in nature, and eating from the local abundance. Enjoy the warmth, embrace the beauty, smell the flowers, make that garden salad, and eat those cookies and berry fresh pies! We love you!

See you in the aisles,

Nicole Villano, GM