A Note To Owners From Board President Amanda Degener

Hello Eastside Food Co-op owners!

The Board of Directors wishes to inform you that Smita Dolan and Sadie Paschke alerted the Board of their desire to resign in late February. Smita and Sadie cited personal reasons for their resignations and the Board wants to acknowledge the valuable contributions they made to Eastside Food Co-op. Their experience, thoughtful insights, and impactful guidance were greatly valued and appreciated, and the Board wishes them the best in their future endeavors. The Board officially accepted their resignations at its March meeting, and as allowed by the co-op’s Bylaws, appointed two owners to serve until the next regularly scheduled election in late September of this year.

Please join us in welcoming Michelle Spangler and Sarah Baeverstad to the Eastside Food Co-op Board of Directors. Michelle is rejoining the Board after completing a three-year term in 2022. Since leaving the Board, Michelle has continued to serve Eastside as the Board Assistant. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to this role. Sarah recently purchased a home in Northeast Minneapolis within walking distance of Eastside. She has developed her passion for providing healthy food access and education to young people and families in her role in Youth Programs at Eastside Neighborhood Services over the last 10 years. We are so excited to welcome these two dynamic individuals to the Board of Directors! We also want to take this opportunity to thank Samantha Bailey for taking on the additional role of Board Secretary. Samantha will serve as the Secretary/Treasurer for the remainder of the current Board term.

Owners will be asked to vote for five owners when we hold Board of Director elections later this year. Three elected owners will serve three-year terms and two will serve the remainder of the terms vacated by Sadie and Smita (until October 2024). Serving on the Eastside Food Co-op Board is a meaningful way to deepen your engagement with the co-op and provides you an opportunity to help shape the future of your community owned grocery store. We hope you will consider running for the Board and we’d welcome the opportunity to discuss your interest. Please don’t hesitate to email us (board@eastsidefood.coop) if you are ready to make a difference in Eastside’s community. Eastside is here for good!

Amanda Degener

Board President