First member meeting held!
The first membership meeting of Tom’s Natural Foods Cooperative was held on May 20 2024 at 7pm at the Kirkland Town Library. The draft by-laws were adopted after review and discussion, and a board to directors was elected. The bylaws as adopted are here; and minutes of the meeting, including the names of the elected board members, are here.
If you were unable to make the meeting but would like to cast your vote for the record, please send an email to smajor@hamilton.edu. Stay tuned for more information as the board starts to take the next steps towards opening Tom’s Natural Foods Cooperative.
If you haven’t yet had a chance to join as a member, or wish to make an investment or donation beyond your membership fee, see the "How to Support” box below.
First member meeting scheduled!
Update - May 2, 2024: Woo-hoo!
Our grassroots fundraising campaign has successfully reached the target amount of $25,000. The next step is to hold a membership meeting and formally launch the cooperative. The meeting will be :
May 20th
7:00 - 8:15 PM
Kirkland Town Library (upstairs in the Bristol room)
At this meeting we will discuss the by-laws, make any amendments, and vote on whether to adopt the by-laws.
We also will elect a board of directors for Toms Coop.
Before the meeting please review the by-laws at this link, and consider running for the board of directors. Please let us know if you’d like to run for the board. Members unable to make the in-person meeting will have an opportunity to vote online during the day following the meeting.
Please keep the memberships, donations, and investments coming! The more we have in the bank when we reopen the more inventory we can have, the more hours we can be open, etc. At the meeting only members will be able to vote. But you can join the coop at the meeting by paying the fee online or by check.
All the best,
The Tom’s Steering Committee (Jim Frederick, Alicia Luhrssen-Zombek, Seth Major, and Jim Manning)
Fundraising underway!
UPDATE - March 6 2024:
This grassroots fundraising effort has raised over $20,000!
Total members: 36
Total Investors: 10
Total investment shares: 14
Goal: $25,000 and 100 members
Help Tom’s Get Over The Line!! Once we reach $25,000 we’ll start opening.
Tom’s Natural Foods Cooperative, Inc.
Clinton's oldest grocery store …
and soon to be Clinton's first food co-op!
Where’s Tom’s?
We’re currently looking for our new home. We are looking at locations in the village and nearby that will allow us to expand our accessibility and more!
What’s a food co-op?
A food co-op is a grocery store owned by folks in their community (and by you, if you choose).
Unlike corporate chains, food co-ops are totally independent and owned by the community members who shop there. So instead of focusing on investors, food co-ops focus on their community — nourishing everyone according to their budget and cooking style.
Co-op grocery stores are the place to find the best local food, because they know their local farmers and family business owners by name. And food co-ops are passionate about giving back to their communities. They believe that good food is just the beginning of what people can achieve by working together.
What will Tom’s be?
Tom's Natural Foods Co-op will be a store with primarily natural, organic, fresh, nutritious, locally sourced, and bulk food.
Same old Tom’s that you know and love, now cooperatively owned by members of the community LIKE YOU!
If you want to stay in touch please complete the form below:
HOW TO SUPPORT Tom’s Natural Foods Cooperative:
Membership
Members in the coop are each issued one common share in the corporation. Members have one vote and may be eligible for use-based dividends. Membership is $100.
Investment share
Investors are members (see above) who wish to support the coop in a larger fashion. Investors eligible for larger use-based dividends. Each investment share is $1000; multiple shares may be purchased.
Donation
Donations are just that, donations. Tom’s is a not-for profit company but does not have 501(c)3 status, so donations to Tom’s are not tax deductible. Donations are gratefully accepted, but are not tied to membership or investment.
In our initial phase of fund raising we will be operating in a reversible mode: If we are able to raise $25,000 then we will rent a space, hire a part time manager, and acquire equipment and inventory. If we do not meet our target by December 31, 2024, then we will refund all donations and investments.
Online payments using Stripe incur a 3% processing fee. We are also happy to accept payments in the form of physical checks, which can be mailed to:
Tom’s Natural Foods Cooperative, Inc.
PO Box 82
Clinton, NY 13323
Pictures and logo courtesy of Tom Sblendorio of tomstudios.com
Tom’s Natural Foods Cooperative, Inc. is a cooperative corporation; contributions are not tax-deductible.