Matching Grant Challenge for Dorchester Food Co-op

The Dorchester Community Food Co-op is approaching the deadline for our matching fund Challenge Grant from the Boston Impact Initiative.

Thanks to many of you, we have raised $2800 toward our goal of $12,500. Now we need to raise the rest--- $9,700 by April 15! If we meet this challenge, we will receive an additional $12,500 from the Boston Impact Initiative and we will have $25,000 to ensure that the co-op can do the pre-development work to move to the next level.

We are meeting with our development partners to finalize site selection for the new co-op. We are very excited about the vision of a whole new 10,000 sq ft "market center" on Bowdoin St. that will include the co-op, as well as complementary businesses, such as a bakery, a fish store, and a bank or credit union.

Chip in $25 or more right now to help make this vision a reality!

Our goal for this co-op is far more than just a source of food. With your support we will also work to create a hub for community gatherings and build a model green community- and worker-owned business. We are tired of hearing that inner city visions are unrealistic! You may have noticed a recent Boston Globe article that talks about many new supermarkets with natural food being built in the Boston area, and you may have ALSO noticed that Dorchester--Boston's largest neighborhood-- is not included in any of these plans! We need to build our OWN store that brings us economic opportunities and community control over our food choices.

Please act now and help us meet this fundraising challenge. With your continued backing for the Dorchester Community Food Coop, we will show that commitment and hard work can make this dream come true in a diverse urban setting.

To Donate on Line: dotcommcoop.wordpress.com 
Look for the Donate Now icon!

Donations of $100 or more are tax deductible if made by check payable to our fiscal sponsor, the Coop Fund of New England. All checks should be mailed to Dorchester Community Food Coop, PO Box 240231, Dorchester, MA 02124

With gratitude for your partnership,

Jenny Silverman and the Board of the Dorchester Community Food Coop
Jhana Senxian, Bing Broderick, Davida Andelman, Rosanne Foley, Sharon Higgins, Jennie Msall, Lynn Murray, Samantha Tan, Joel Wool

RFP: Web & Communications Systems Design

Request for Proposal: Web & Communications Systems Design
Cooperative Development Institute

Overview:
The Cooperative Development Institute (CDI) is the Northeast's Center for Cooperative Business Development. A 501(c)3 founded in 1994, CDI's mission is to build a cooperative economy in New England and New York through direct business assistance, education, and networking. We are looking for a consultant to develop a communication and marketing strategy and set up our web, email, social media, and other systems so that we can easily and effectively communicate with our stakeholders and the public about the work we do, the services we offer, and the cooperative economy in our region.

Scope of Work:

• Design and style guide (including graphics) that matches CDI logo for use on website and emails
• Consultation on which strategies to employ, which host & CMS to use (we want something that is easy to use and maintain)
• Setup of website CMS, social media, print, email systems that market CDI services
• Help with setup and maintenance of article/post indexing, using the tags we have been using for the CDI blog
• Migration of relevant content from existing site, offline documents to the new framework
• Basic training on structure of website – how to enter content so we can keep it up to date
• Set-up and training on tracking analytics
• Availability for ongoing check-ins
• Estimated cost of project: between $5,000 and $8,000

Skills:

• Website design and setup, Vertical Response (the email system that we use), Salesforce (our relationship database)
• Demonstrated experience with web design that has a marketing purpose

Timeline:
Work to be completed within three months of starting contract.

The successful proposal will demonstrate strategic insight about the current web and social media presence of CDI (see www.cdi.coop) and recommendations for change, and will include examples of relevant work. Please send proposals to info@cdi.coop by April 29.

NYC Bookkeeping Co-op startup looking for new members

A Bookkeeping Cooperative (ABC) is looking for two experienced bookkeepers or accountants based in NYC to bring our start-up cooperative to a higher level. We are a worker-owned cooperative that offers day-to-day bookkeeping services to cooperatives, non-profits, social justice endeavors, alternative healthcare practitioners and small community-based businesses. We offer:

- Full charge bookkeeping services
- Quickbooks set-up and troubleshooting
- Liaising with accountants for tax reporting
- Bookkeeping and financial literacy training for our clients
- Other day-to-day operations for our clients (paying bills, filing, etc.)

We are looking for a rockstar bookkeeper or accountant to take on an average of 4-10 hours of work a week and who is interested in democracy at work. This person should be able to meet bi-weekly for cooperative development discussions. We are looking for someone who has 1-3 years experience at a minimum doing bookkeeping or accounting. Any of the below would be bonuses:

- Bi-lingual (Spanish and English)
- A network of referrals for business services, and ability to bring on new clients
- Flexible schedule to cover clients in the NYC area while fellow members are sick or on vacation
- Interested in project management in website development (for us), payroll processing (for our clients and for us), incorporation (for us)
- Commitment to building a new business, cooperatively, and ability to contribute to sweat equity hours after your 6 month trial (300 hours in the first 2 years, about 15 hours a month)

We can offer:

- Bookkeeping work: many flexible part-time jobs (~4-15 hours/week starting from our current and growing client base)
- A knowledge base of best practices in bookkeeping for co-ops and non-profits, radical HR, and tax law, that we want you to help build and contribute to
- A good wage, and an opportunity to co-own the business and share profit
- Community: you don’t have to be a lonely freelancer anymore - we continually become better bookkeepers from communicating and sharing ideas and jobs
- A prize-winning business plan to guarantee our success

We are working towards offering benefits and profit sharing. Any unbilled time you spend on business development would be considered “love” to this endeavor and count toward sweat equity.

The cooperative track is a 6-month trial period with an affordable and/or pay over time buy-in. The co-op has two founding members and a DAWN intern.

Please submit resumes and a letter describing why you would be a perfect match to info@bookkeeping.coop.

March 15: Co-op info session in Worcester, MA

CO-OP ACADEMY
INFO SESSION
FRIDAY, MARCH 15th
3:00PM
at the WORCESTER PUBLIC LIBRARY, Saxe Room
3 Salem St Worcester,MA 01608
Delicious food will be served!
Free and open to the public.

Childcare and interpreting available upon request (RSVP with request by March 7th at www.WorcesterRoots.org)

- Key topics include:

• What are the different kinds of co-ops?
• What are the principles of co-ops?
• How do youth get involved in co-ops?
• How do you get funding and training to start a co-op?

REGISTER HERE / REGÍSTRASE AQUI

FULL CO-OP ACADEMY INFO HERE.