The ballot box is located inside the store, near the "tomato burst" floor art. Details about voting and election procedures can be found at the Davis Food Co-op Election page.
2015 Election Calendar
| Election Event | 2015 date | Bylaws specify… |
|---|---|---|
| Member Initiative Deadline | Sunday, March 15 | 45 days before mailing date of an already scheduled regular election ballot |
|
Voter's Pamphlet Deadline for Candidate statements & pictures, and ballot arguments |
Thursday, April 9 @ 9:55 PM |
20 days before mailing date |
| Mailing Date: Voter's Pamphlet sent to shareholders in good standing on 3/31, and Notice of Annual Meeting | Wednesday, April 29 | Set by Board (Mailing Date is the beginning of the voting period); Meeting Notice sent between 21 and 90 days before Annual Meeting |
|
(watch a video of our 40th Anniversary Meeting on May 20, 2012!) |
Sunday, May 31 |
As called by the Board |
| Last Day of Election | Friday, June 5 | 30 days after mailing date or later (if specified by Board) |
| Ballots counted | Monday, June 8 after 2 PM in Co-op Conference Room | (Two days of mail delivery after 6/5/15 postmark deadline) |
| Preliminary results accepted by outgoing Board | Monday, June 8 | Regular meeting, one week late, Co-op Teaching Kitchen, 537 G St. |
| Results available | Wednesday, June 10 |
5 days after close of election (Prelim. results available Mon. night) |
| If needed, modified results accepted by outgoing Board | Monday, June 15 |
Special meeting if needed, at Co-op Teaching Kitchen, 537 G St. |
Candidates
Please note that Candidate Sacha Klein, listed in the mailed version of the Voter's Pamphlet, has withdrawn her candidacy.
J. Faye Dixon
After 16 wonderful years in Philadelphia, all of them as a member of the Weaver’s Way Co-op inMount Airy, I was more than a little sad to move way west to Davis with my family. However, I instantly found a delightful town with a beautiful, thriving co-op. We have been members for the past nine years and I have thoroughly enjoyed my small peek behind the scenes as a super-worker in wine for all of the last seven.
My reasons for wanting to join the co-op board of directors are two-fold. First, I believe in the economic model provided by cooperative business and the role it plays in maintaining a vibrant and inclusive community, including an empowered work staff. Second, as a child and adolescent psychologist for the past 25 years I am deeply committed to the mental and physical well-being of families. Good nutrition provided by access to healthy foods is essential to this end. I welcome to the opportunity to work on issues of access and affordability to good foods for all in our community, and how this end might be achieved through the economic model provided by cooperatives. I have served on educational boards previously and understand the importance of effective, shared governance.
Sandra Schickele
My first year as a Director of the Davis Co-op Board is coming to a close. I was elected an Alternate and became a Director after a resignation. It has been exciting and educational. Our Co-op, like many others across the country, is in the midst of change. The most obvious is the hiring of a permanent general manager. But the Co-op Board and staff are also looking at what we must do to be the best natural foods grocer possible and to be a strong competitor in a crowded market. The Board has embraced both the need and the opportunities created by change and is taking steps to get the upper hand on it. I want to continue to be part of that process.
I have come to appreciate that we began as a unique entity in the food landscape, but over the years, other organizations have recognized the strong desire people have for what we do and joined us in providing organic, natural foods. But we still have something special to offer. We are member owned, and our members play an important role in our organization and our community. We are an integral part of the Davis community in a way that other grocery stores can’t be. For more than 40 years the Co-op has been passionate about good food, our Co-op family, our members, and the Davis community. I want to be part of making this overwhelmingly evident to anyone who walks into our store and to the Davis community as a whole. As we work on doing this, we will ensure that we are around to celebrate several more milestones and anniversaries.
Thomas M. Hagler
(530) 574-1152
My wife, Martha, our two sons, and I moved from Dixon to Davis in 1985. Our sons attended Davis Schools, K-12. We became CoOp members in 1999. We value the Co-Op both as a vital resource for healthy food and for the community based, democratic model it presents. I would like to join the Board of Directors to make a positive contribution to the Co-Op’s governance and sustainability.
I’m retired and am able to commit the hours of required participation, weekly and monthly.
The organizations in which I have participated as directing/participating member for more than one year each include youth (Little League and High School Band Boosters), community (Unitarian Church of Davis, Solano County Legal Aid), and municipal (Recreation and Parks and Human Relations Commissions).
I practiced law for 35 years representing civil litigants in private practice with the firm of Power, Hagler and Nelson and indigent defendants in public practice with the Solano County Public Defender.
Participation in volunteer and professional activities gave me experience with cooperative decision-making, budgets, human resources, advocacy, counsel, litigation, analysis, and organizational process.
Vincent Ortiz
The Davis Food Co-op is a place that has offered me and many others from this community a chance to build a future, learn about sustainability and natural/organic foods, and really understand the benefits that the Co-op brings to our community and the city of Davis. Throughout the last year I decided to take my commitment to the next level through attending board meetings and working with directors on some key issues.
As a grocery department supervisor, I feel that I have a good understanding of how the operations side of the co-op works. This also gives me the opportunity to connect with stakeholders from different backgrounds such as customers, members, local producers, vendors, farmers and volunteers.
I have also attended board meetings and am currently participating as an active member of the General Manager Search Taskforce. I, along with fellow co-worker Andy Cordova, was elected by a staff of 100+ employees to assist in the search for the Davis Food Co-op’s next general manager. Through this experience I have gained a lot of knowledge about how the board works and how committees are used to tackle a broad range of projects and issues. This will enable me to be a more effective board member from the start.
Over the next year the board will have the task of overseeing a lot of big changes, and will have to tackle some very important issues - all while helping to orient a new general manager. I look forward to offering insights, as well as learning from this process, as we move forward. I work hard and put in my best effort regardless of the situation. I would like to bring that ethic to the next board of directors.
Ken Bradford
Hello, fellow Co-op owners. I’ve been a member-owner since 1976, and last year was persuaded to run for the Board of Directors. I squeaked in as the 2nd Alternate Director, but after resignations found myself serving as a “full-time” board member. This has been a very interesting year for the Board and for the Co-op: busy, challenging and utterly fascinating. There’s so much to learn, I feel I’ve barely begun to wrap my head around many of the challenges we’re facing together – so I’m asking for a chance to continue the process of finding solutions along with the rest of the board, staff & owners.
Among the challenges facing this business we own together are transitioning to a new General Manager, revising our arcane and unwieldy Bylaws, and continuing to improve our Human Resources policies & procedures so that all staff can concentrate on ‘wowing’ our customers. We’ve got to be at our best to compete in the current Davis grocery market – and I’m convinced that with our distinctive values & assets, we can be. My hope is that my perspective as a local guy (grew up in Davis), long-time Co-op member, and experienced small-business manager can help us face these challenges and make the transition to a brighter future.
I’ve spent most of my career working in small, locally-owned healthy-living businesses. Some were successful, some were not – and I’ve learned from both. Success takes more than noble ideals and hard work, it requires a pragmatic understanding of small-business operations – and of cooperation. I’m best known for creating a Davis business focused on sustainable local human-powered transportation - where I’ve had practical experience forging win-win partnerships with cycling clubs, advocacy groups, government agencies, vendors, ‘competitors’ and industry organizations -- including a nationwide cooperative of bike shops, where I’ve held leadership positions. The Davis Food Co-op Board demands far more time and energy than any of these, possibly more than all put together. The fact that I’m asking you to return me to this job shows I’m committed to finishing work we’ve started and seeing the Co-op thrive. Thank you for your votes!
Michael Larsen
(530) 492-0480
Hello fellow Co-op members—thank you for taking the time to vote in our Co-op Board election.
Concurrent with this election, the current Board of Directors is hiring a new General Manager. This transition marks an exciting opportunity for our Co-op, but I also believe that the incoming Board has a critical and delicate responsibility in orienting and empowering the new GM. For this transition to be successful, I believe the Board must have an open-mind to fresh ideas and approaches, while doubling-down on the Co-op’s commitment to our shared community values.
My professional background is in conflict resolution, sustainable community development, and environmental policy. Drawing on my experience and the collective knowledge of our member-owners, I hope to bring a pragmatic, regionally-minded approach to my service on the Board. Without losing sight of what makes our community unique, I believe we can learn much from the experiences of other cooperatives—many of which have wrestled with the same challenges we face today.
Like many of you, I love our Co-op for its healthful, sustainable, high-quality food. But in my mind, the most defining feature of our Co-op is that it is ours. Our cooperative ownership among 10,000+ members allows the Co-op to reflect our community’s values to an extent that other, competing stores cannot. This is what sets our store apart, and I believe this distinction will be critical for our continued success in the face of increased competition.
I feel incredibly lucky to live in a community where a business like our Co-op can thrive. This culture and community are precisely why my wife and I—and we hope eventually our family—choose to call Davis home. It would be an honor to join our Board in working toward a stronger, vibrant, and more sustainable Co-op.
Do you have comments or questions for the candidates? Edit this page and ask!
