Our Neighbors Still Need Support

by Mira Rabin, Weavers Way Community Fund Board Chair

November 5, 2026

by Mira Rabin, Weavers Way Community Fund Board Chair

Last fall, when the federal government shutdown resulted in the suspension of SNAP benefits, Weavers Way Co-op made a commitment to replace those funds for its members who received the assistance and challenged its membership at large to support that effort through donations to its Cooperative Food Fund. Members responded with large and small donations—the average donation was fifty dollars—totaling $189,000. This extraordinary demonstration of mutual aid allowed Weavers Way not only to offset the SNAP shortfall but also to increase the Food for All discount from 15 percent to 20 percent for the remainder of 2025 and to support the Food for All program through the end of fiscal 2026.

This is a story of the power of the cooperative model to address income inequality and of its ability to respond quickly to a crisis in its community. It is not, however, a story with a happy ending. This year, with no government shutdown, SNAP recipients are arguably worse off than last year, thanks to cuts in eligibility (to both SNAP and Medicaid) that have gone into effect since then, with more cuts on the horizon. As a result, more of our neighbors are struggling to feed themselves, and more households are signing up for the Food for All program. This growth in enrollment confirms that we are filling an important community need, support that we are committed to maintaining. This support, however, comes at a growing cost (approximately $400,000/year) to Weavers Way’s bottom line. So once again, we are asking Weavers Way members to support other Weavers Way members so that we can all enjoy the bounty of our stores.

This year, the Cooperative Food Fund aims to raise $100,000 by December 20. We got a great start at the General Membership Meeting on October 21, where attendees gave or pledged almost $2,000. You can donate using the QR code below, at the register, or online at weaversway.coop or by mailing a check to Weavers Way Community Fund (memo line: Cooperative Food Fund), 559 Carpenter Lane, Philadelphia, PA 19119. The Round-up (shopping total is rounded up to the next dollar) and Dollar-up (one dollar is added to shopping total) programs also support the Food for All program, so consider signing up for one of those as well. All donations are tax-deductible. Thank you!