Updates - October 2020

THE SHARE CHRONICLE

OUR STORY
Monthly Edition | October 2020

The Cutting Edge

After months of build up, the 2020 election finally arrived. While we anxiously await results, we want to highlight the cutting edge work of our partners at The Justice Collective, as they continue to mobilize for voting rights here in Forsyth County.

Justice in Action

True to their name, The Justice Collective is all about collaboration. They are composed of a tight-knit coalition of organizations and individuals from around Winston-Salem, all devoted to ensuring that our city is working toward a more equitable future. They describe their mission as an effort to "build trust and unity with each other and, in turn, maximize our impact on justice-related issues by mobilizing and building power to take action together." So, what does this look like in practice?

Throughout the election season, the Justice Collective has amassed a diverse group of Winston-Salem residents to do everything from disseminating election information across social media platforms to providing opportunities for people to assist with poll working.

The Justice Collective has worked tirelessly to ensure that our upcoming election is fair, and that everyone has an equal opportunity to vote. We're proud to support them and to be a part of their important work!

October is National Cooperative Month, and SHARE Cooperative certainly celebrated in style! On October 24th, we hosted the Grand Opening for the online grocery sales from our Harvest Market, and it's full steam ahead from here.

Constructing our Future

As excited and proud as we are, we didn't spend the whole month celebrating—there's tasks to be done: food to stock on our shelves, grants to apply for, and a whole grocery store to build. During this past month, SHARE ordered over $5,000 of food as a test run for our online grocery store, and we've already sold over three-fourths of what we bought! As we continue to expand our grocery services, we're excited to see more customers shop with us!

Our next task is the big one: opening the brick-and-mortar location for the Harvest Market. In November, we will start construction to outfit our retail space with all the equipment that we need—refrigerators, shelves, checkout lanes, and more. With that process complete, we expect to have our Harvest Market open for the new year!

So, how can you help? This past month, SHARE applied for two more grants to secure the necessary funding to open and operate the Harvest Market. In the coming weeks, we should hear back from many of the opportunities that we've applied to, but in the meantime, we need your support! If you are able, donate to SHARE, or shop online from the Harvest Market to support our mission of ending food insecurity in Forsyth County!

Your friends at,

SHARE Cooperative

This holiday season, give the gift of good food!

SHARE cash cards are available for purchase at www.harvestmarket.store. Consider donating a $25 card to SHARE in honor of someone special and we will send an acknowledgement to your honoree!

With each $25 donation, SHARE will provide a fruit or vegetable box to local community members who don't know where their next meal is coming from. All boxes have enough produce to feed a family of four for a whole week!

SHARE's Food Pharmacy is open!

If you are in need of medical, dental or behavioral health care, visit our partners at: United Health Centers on Peters Creek Parkway.
Reach out to them at (336) 955-1379.

If you receive a prescription, we will provide you with a package of food!

HELP WANTED!

If you are a SHARE Member and want to volunteer to make SHARE better, here's your chance! We are recruiting volunteers to answer our Customer Service phones and to make follow-up calls with customers to improve their shopping experiences. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Linda at our office:
Phone: 336-283-3299
Email: Linda@Share-ws.coop

Thanks for all you do!

The Reverend's Corner

Authentic Engagement

Last week I attended a Community Food Justice Workshop. Community folks, interested in food justice, attended the zoom summit.

Brahm Ahmadi, a food justice advocate and social entrepreneur from California lead the discussion. His leading question: what’s the central challenge to building a healthier and more equitable community? Ahmadi ‘s answer, “securing community engagement or that critical mass of support.”

In the last several years we at SHARE have labored to build a movement which creates inclusive, diverse, and authentic outcomes. Our end goal, to open a full-service food market in a food-desert. As I call it, to mitigate food insecurity. Funding is in-fact a key challenge. But in the wider community (where there is stealth wealth) our looming challenge has been to cast a net that captures the hearts of those who could help.

If you ask me what I believe to be major obstacles to heart-help: my list would include: Traditional assumed power and privilege; Apathy; and Lack of Trust.

To those who have given Time, Talents and Treasures, Thank you again, and again.
To those who could support our work, I solicit your earnest Authentic Engagement.

How you ask:

Join our SHARE community work.
Continue to learn about food insecurity and how it negatively impacts the overall health of our community.
Purchase food through your Harvest Market; your spending choices have an impact. Food purchased through your food cooperative promotes the local community.

Lastly, while preparing for the celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday, remember our less fortunate neighbors – those who are facing hunger, especially during the present pandemic.

Sincerely,

Rev. Gary R. Williams
Co-founder

Luke 6:31 - 36 (NRSV)

Visit us at 603 Peters Creek Parkway and follow us on social media!

The Reverend's Corner

Authentic Engagement

To those who have given Time, Talents and Treasures, Thank you again, and again. To those who could support our work, I solicit your earnest Authentic Engagement. How you ask:

Join our SHARE community work.

Continue to learn about food insecurity and how it negatively impacts the overall health of our community.

Purchase food through your Harvest Market; your spending choices have an impact. Food purchased through your food cooperative promotes the local community.

Lastly, while preparing for the celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday, remember our less fortunate neighbors – those who are facing hunger, especially during the present pandemic. Sincerely, Rev. Gary R. Williams Co-founder

Luke 6:31 - 36 (NRSV)

To those who have given Time, Talents and Treasures, Thank you again, and again.
To those who could support our work, I solicit your earnest Authentic Engagement.

How you ask:

Lastly, while preparing for the celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday, remember our less fortunate neighbors – those who are facing hunger, especially during the present pandemic.

Sincerely,

Rev. Gary R. Williams
Co-founder