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| Terre Foods Cooperative Market Newsletter
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Greetings!
We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season! The Steering Committee and Board are now back in session and back to work. We would like to extend our thanks to Colleen Magnuson, our outgoing board member, for her service. We would also like to welcome Dr. Debra Worley to our Board as its newest member, and congratulate Dr. Tammy Tintjer and Dr. Karla Hansen-Speer for their re-election in our first ever official Board elections. This should be a great year--the year we open our store!
Below you will find an update on the prospective property for our co-op, dates and times for upcoming talks on local foods being sponsored by Terre Foods, and an update on our Member Loan program. Please read on, and stay in the loop for what is happening with your store! And as always, do not hesitate to contact us with questions, concerns, or ideas--remember, this is your store! Thank you for your continued support as we near our goal.
Sincerely,
Robyn Morton
Terre Foods Cooperative Market
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7th & Poplar
At the end of last year we had a verbal commitment with the seller to extend our purchase agreement on 7th & Poplar. Unfortunately, this verbal agreement did not turn into a written agreement. The seller made several requests which, while not unreasonable, were more than we felt comfortable with taking on at this point (e.g., paying utilities, portions of property taxes, taking over grounds maintenance, etc.). We want to secure a property, but we want to do it carefully, and minimize wasted money and effort. So, as of today, we do not currently have a contract on this property.
HOWEVER, we are still very optimistic that we will secure this building. Over the past few weeks, members of the Steering Committee have met with several banks in the area, and have made some great progress. When we have more details, we will get them to you immediately. It is important to understand, though, that any finance package we receive will be contingent upon the owners (that's all of us) putting up our share of the total cost. That is, bank financing will be contingent upon a successful Member Loan campaign. With our portion of the financing, and the banks coming forward for the remainder, we should be able to move quickly on this property and finally begin the build-out! Also, the Steering Committee continues to look at other competing properties, to keep our options open; we want to guard against being locked into one property--that's a terrible negotiating position!
If any member would like to see our current business plan, or look over our financial documents (to see exactly how our finance package will be structured), please email robyn@terrefoods.org. And if you have any experience in finance, we are always looking for more assistance!
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Upcoming Talks
on Local Foods
- Thurs, Feb. 25th, 7-9:30p, Dede I, ISU HMSU: Marian Fass from Slow Foods will speak on local foods and education. This talk is sponsored by ISU and SENCER (Science Education for New Civic Engagement and Responsibility). Admission: FREE.
- Sat, Feb. 27th, 7:00pm, Owen Hall, SMWC: Jane Bush will speak at the St. Mary of the Woods campus on the importance of local foods and resources. This talk is sponsored by the White Violet Center.
Admission: $10 in advance, $15 at the door; all proceeds go to Terre Foods.
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Have you seen our Billboard?
Huge thanks go to Christina Blust for the awesome design! The billboard is currently located on Hwy 41, viewable as you are heading north towards Poplar Ave. It will stay there for another month, and then it may move to a new location to spread the word more effectively. The billboard is made of reusable material, so it can be easily moved several times. And perhaps once the store is open, we can have a contest for how to repurpose the material!
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We are now making real progress with banks, and are getting our financial package together, we will be re-launching the Member Loan Drive! Watch your mail for a letter about this program, which will hopefully go out before the end of January. To date, the Member Loan campaign has raised $54,000. We are off to a great start--we can do it! Remember, the Member Loan program is how we, the owners, raise our portion of the financing package. While we understand that not everyone can give a loan, we hope that those who can will do so, and will loan generously. Giving a Member Loan is a wonderful way to invest your money in a sound way that will genuinely better our community--make a loan today!
Visit our Member Loan page for further information, and contact us with any questions about this program. And watch your mail!
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Sponsors
Visit Our Sponsor
We have so many people to thank for their support. In this issue, we would like to offer our thanks to Jerry at John's Dental for providing the wonderful PRINTING SERVICES for our project! All of the lovely brochures and letters you receive are thanks to his generous donations of time and effort, saving the Steering Committee immense amounts of money and effort.
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Contact Us
PO Box 3043
Terre Haute, Indiana 47804
www.terrefoods.org
info@terrefoods.org
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