PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 30, 2015 — Bad luck for Weavers Way generated some good fortune for area food banks Monday, as a power outage that darkened the main Co-op store in Chestnut Hill prompted the giveaway of thousands of dollars worth of food that would otherwise have gone to waste.
Power went out at the 8424 Germantown Ave. location of the Northwest Philadelphia cooperative grocery about 4:15 a.m., according to General Manager Jon Roesser, who spent much of the day working with staffers to transport perishables into temporary storage and into the hands of local outfits that redistribute food to the needy.
Co-op staffers scrambled to get produce, meat, seafood and dairy trucked to refrigerated storage at the Weavers Way warehouse in Nicetown and packed into the still-cold walk-ins in Chestnut Hill. With a load of dry ice, Roesser reported that temperatures were holding in the Chestnut Hill coolers.
That left frozen food and products already out in the prepared foods cases to be given to the food pantries.
“We immediately got on the phone with our friends at Philabundance and they got on the phone with their friends who have food pantries,” Roesser said. “Basically, a dozen people dropped everything to come over here and get what we had before it went bad.”
As Therman Keel and Kenneth Cooper loaded boxes of frozen vegetables into a van, Keel explained that their food bank, at Grace Tabernacle Christian Church in Southwest Philadelphia, has plenty of storage capacity. “But this will all be gone by this afternoon,” Keel said, chuckling.
Volunteers from Face to Face Germantown, who visit the Chestnut Hill store almost daily to collect bread, produce, prepared food and meat that otherwise would be discarded, also found themselves boxing up frozen food. Tom Laughlin and Bob Rossman were driving it immediately to St. Vincent’s Roman Catholic Church in Germantown for use in its soup kitchen.
Other beneficiaries were the Food Cupboard (Loaves and Fishes) at Jenkintown United Methodist Church, 2 Fish 5 Loaves Food Ministry at Upper Room Missionary Baptist Church in West Oak Lane and the food pantry at the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s Oxford Village in Lawndale.
Roesser said he and his team have been working on a backup generator strategy for both stores since a major outage in Chestnut Hill in August. “We said let’s get the ball rolling, and we’ve actually been making progress — we had a structural engineer in the week before Thanksgiving and we have solicited bids,” said Roesser.
The August outage, which resulted in the loss of all perishable product in the Chestnut Hill store, was the result of a PECO error, but as of Monday afternoon, the cause of the latest outage was still unknown.
PECO spokesman Greg Smore said the utility had determined the problem was “an underground equipment issue” isolated to the immediate area of the store. An excavating crew was on site and Smore said the work was expected to go on into Monday night.
Roesser estimated the value of the donated food at $6,000-$7,000. Monday sales in the Chestnut Hill store have been averaging more than $30,000, according to Weavers Way Finance Manager Susan Beetle.
About Weavers Way: With stores in Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill, the Co-op is member-owned, open to the public and committed to offering quality products that are local, sustainable and nutritious. For more information, visit www.weaversway.coop.
PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 30, 2015 — Bad luck for Weavers Way generated some good fortune for area food banks Monday, as a power outage that darkened the main Co-op store in Chestnut Hill prompted the giveaway of thousands of dollars worth of food that would otherwise have gone to waste.
Power went out at the 8424 Germantown Ave. location of the Northwest Philadelphia cooperative grocery about 4:15 a.m., according to General Manager Jon Roesser, who spent much of the day working with staffers to transport perishables into temporary storage and into the hands of local outfits that redistribute food to the needy.
Co-op staffers scrambled to get produce, meat, seafood and dairy trucked to refrigerated storage at the Weavers Way warehouse in Nicetown and packed into the still-cold walk-ins in Chestnut Hill. With a load of dry ice, Roesser reported that temperatures were holding in the Chestnut Hill coolers.
That left frozen food and products already out in the prepared foods cases to be given to the food pantries.
“We immediately got on the phone with our friends at Philabundance and they got on the phone with their friends who have food pantries,” Roesser said. “Basically, a dozen people dropped everything to come over here and get what we had before it went bad.”
As Therman Keel and Kenneth Cooper loaded boxes of frozen vegetables into a van, Keel explained that their food bank, at Grace Tabernacle Christian Church in Southwest Philadelphia, has plenty of storage capacity. “But this will all be gone by this afternoon,” Keel said, chuckling.
Volunteers from Face to Face Germantown, who visit the Chestnut Hill store almost daily to collect bread, produce, prepared food and meat that otherwise would be discarded, also found themselves boxing up frozen food. Tom Laughlin and Bob Rossman were driving it immediately to St. Vincent’s Roman Catholic Church in Germantown for use in its soup kitchen.
Other beneficiaries were the Food Cupboard (Loaves and Fishes) at Jenkintown United Methodist Church, 2 Fish 5 Loaves Food Ministry at Upper Room Missionary Baptist Church in West Oak Lane and the food pantry at the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s Oxford Village in Lawndale.
Roesser said he and his team have been working on a backup generator strategy for both stores since a major outage in Chestnut Hill in August. “We said let’s get the ball rolling, and we’ve actually been making progress — we had a structural engineer in the week before Thanksgiving and we have solicited bids,” said Roesser.
The August outage, which resulted in the loss of all perishable product in the Chestnut Hill store, was the result of a PECO error, but as of Monday afternoon, the cause of the latest outage was still unknown.
PECO spokesman Greg Smore said the utility had determined the problem was “an underground equipment issue” isolated to the immediate area of the store. An excavating crew was on site and Smore said the work was expected to go on into Monday night.
Roesser estimated the value of the donated food at $6,000-$7,000. Monday sales in the Chestnut Hill store have been averaging more than $30,000, according to Weavers Way Finance Manager Susan Beetle.
About Weavers Way: With stores in Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill, the Co-op is member-owned, open to the public and committed to offering quality products that are local, sustainable and nutritious. For more information, visit www.weaversway.coop.
That very spicy stuff Ted Ebert and Tom Hewell want you to sprinkle on your potatoes, and pizza and well, anything, began as a hobby when they were roommates in Manayunk.
Discover Local: We Care Where Your Food Comes From
We work hard to select products that positively impact our bodies and communities while minimizing harm to the environment. Over a third of all of our sales are local products, meaning they are sourced within 150 miles of our stores. Our own farms grow fresh food while restoring the environment right here in Northwest Philadelphia.
At Weavers Way’s farms, our full-time and seasonal farm staff grows food sold at the stores, at our farmstands and to CSA members. We founded and support a nonprofit, Food Moxie, a self-sustaining 501(c) 3 organization that provides farm and nutrition education to underserved children and adults.
In the early 1970s, a group of neighbors in West Mt. Airy got together to use their combined buying power to gain more control over their food, and how much it cost. Their buying club evolved into Weavers Way Cooperative Association. What makes co-ops different from other businesses is that each member is an owner, each with an equal say in how the operation. No one can amass a majority share. No one controls the assets. Weavers Way’s focus is our members, not profits.
We now boast more than 10,000 member-owners, and welcome thousands more non-members who shop the Co-op. In four decades, we've moved firmly in the direction of organic and sustainable. We seek out local producers and vendors and pay our workers a living wage, so money spent at Weavers Way stays in the community. We do this because it reflects our understanding of the need to nurture both the earth and our community — and because it’s what our members want.
Discover Local: We Care Where Your Food Comes From
We work hard to select products that positively impact our bodies and communities while minimizing harm to the environment. Over a third of all of our sales are local products, meaning they are sourced within 150 miles of our stores. Our own farms grow fresh food while restoring the environment right here in Northwest Philadelphia.
At Weavers Way’s farms, our full-time and seasonal farm staff grows food sold at the stores, at our farmstands and to CSA members. We founded and support a nonprofit, Food Moxie, a self-sustaining 501(c) 3 organization that provides farm and nutrition education to underserved children and adults.
In the early 1970s, a group of neighbors in West Mt. Airy got together to use their combined buying power to gain more control over their food, and how much it cost. Their buying club evolved into Weavers Way Cooperative Association. What makes co-ops different from other businesses is that each member is an owner, each with an equal say in how the operation. No one can amass a majority share. No one controls the assets. Weavers Way’s focus is our members, not profits.
We now boast more than 10,000 member-owners, and welcome thousands more non-members who shop the Co-op. In four decades, we've moved firmly in the direction of organic and sustainable. We seek out local producers and vendors and pay our workers a living wage, so money spent at Weavers Way stays in the community. We do this because it reflects our understanding of the need to nurture both the earth and our community — and because it’s what our members want.
PHILADELPHIA, PA, Nov. 3, 2015 — For the second year in a row, Weavers Way has paid out a patronage rebate to its members based on profits earned by the Co-op in the last fiscal year.
Weavers Way's Board of Directors declared the rebate, totaling $217,000, at its October meeting. The rebate program began on Friday, Oct. 30.
"It’s a testament to the cooperative business model, plus our dedicated and hard-working staff and a committed membership," said Weavers Way General Manager Jon Roesser. "We look forward to continuing to build on our success."
The amount each Weavers Way member household receives is based on the amount spent at the Co-op during fiscal 2015, July 1, 2014-June 30, 2015. Revenue from Weavers Way's four stores, in Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill, topped $20 million in FY2015.
Members are eligible to take 20 percent of the rebate in cash; the remainder is deposited into member equity accounts. These accounts represent members' ownership stake in the Co-op, and provide capital and financial stability.
The deadline to redeem the rebate is Jan. 31, 2016. Members can collect their cash in any Weavers Way store, and have the option of donating it to the nonprofit Weavers Way Community Programs right at the register.
About Weavers Way: With stores in Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill, the Co-op is member-owned, open to the public and committed to offering quality products that are local, sustainable and nutritious. For more information, visit www.weaversway.coop.
