Friday Finds: December 8, 2017

Take a look at what's new at the Co-op. 

Treeline Dairy Free Cheese

Treeline Cheese is totally dairy-free. It is made of pure, wholesome cashew nuts, acidophilus culture, salt and pepper. No animals are harmed, or even touched in its production.

Blackbird Seitan

Created by award winning chef Mark Mebus of Philadelphia based Blackbird Pizzeria,  Blackbird Foods seitan is a plant based, high protein, low fat and cholesterol-free alternative to meat. 

Primo Naturale

Just in time for the holidays, create the perfect charcuterie plate with cured Italian and Spanish meats. 

Philly Co-op Coffee

Philly Fair Trade Roasters roasted this special coffee blend just for Philly co-ops! $1 of every pound will be donated to the Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance. Find Philly Co-op coffee in our bulk aisle. 

Really Reel Ginger Drinks

Locally made and delicious! Really Reel Ginger drinks are gluten-free and vegan. 

News Roundup March 17, 2017

Via The Notebook

Partnership between Philly Orchestra and KIPP provides instruments to students

In many District and charter schools throughout Philadelphia, art and music programs have disappeared due to budget cuts. But thanks to a new partnership launched between the Philadelphia Orchestra’s School Ensemble Program and KIPP Philadelphia Schools, students in KIPP West Philadelphia Preparatory Charter School and KIPP West Philadelphia Elementary Academy will have access to the orchestra and its musicians, instruments, and innovative music education programs, all while further engaging them in the arts. Read more. 

Cedar Park Neighbors seeking new board members

Do you live in Cedar Park and want to get more involved with the neighborhood? Here’s a great chance. The Cedar Park Neighbors (CPN), the recognized community organization for the Cedar Park neighborhood, is currently seeking new board members to serve the community for the next two years beginning in June 2017. Read more. 

Tokens on their way out: SEPTA Key Card expands

Starting Monday, March 13, SEPTA customers can fully transition to paying for their rides with a Key Card (just tap and go!). SEPTA is expanding the Travel Wallet feature to Market-Frankford Line, Broad Street Line and major bus loop fare kiosks, and riders will be able to purchase a Key Card at fair kiosks and load it with money starting on the following dates at the following Market-Frankford Line stations in West Philly. Read more. 

Jezabel's Cafe to spin off a shop in West Philadelphia

Jezabel Careaga, chef-owner of the Argentine-influenced Jezabel’s Café at 26th and Pine Streets, plans to branch out to West Philadelphia with a new shop opening this spring.

Jezabel's Studio (208 S. 45th St.) will mix food and retail in its 400 square feet: an area for guests to enjoy teas, including a mate tea that she has created for the shop as well as her signature empanadas and alfajores, the Argentine shortbread cookies that she learned to make back home. Read more. 

Kensington Community Food Co-Op Nears Goal to Open $1.9M Fresh Food Store, Bar

A Philadelphia community co-op is nearing its goal as it tries to raise enough money to open a grocery store focused on "fresh" and "local" food at the sight of a former bar.

The Kensington Community Food Co-op extended its "25 in 25" Campaign where mission-driven food distributor The Common Market pledged to match member donations up to $25,000. As of midweek, KCFC had gotten 90 percent to its goal.

This West Philadelphia bike shop is using its profits to serve the local community

Two doors down from the Neighborhood Bike Works office on 39th Street and Lancaster Avenue, the organization recently opened a used bicycle shop.

Neighborhood Bike Works is a West Philadelphia nonprofit that aims to empower youth through cycling initiatives and programming, and all the profits accrued from their bike shop go directly back into the youth programming. Many of their programs are staffed by volunteers, including some Penn and Drexel University students. Read more. 

News Roundup January 6, 2017

Weavers Way gets $1.5M for Montco location

Philadelphia-based Weavers Way Co-op is one step closer to opening a new Montgomery County location, and its third overall, after receiving $1.5 million through a loan campaign — nearly double the original goal.

Weavers Way Co-op — which was established in the West Mount Airy neighborhood of Philadelphia, and in 2010 opened a second location in Chestnut Hill — has plans to open a third grocery store in Ambler in April 2017. Read more. 

Meet the 16-year-old activist organizing a big equality march in Philly

Almost 104 years ago, a day before the inauguration of known-racist and sexist Woodrow Wilson, activist Alice Paul led a march for women’s rights down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.

Next month, a day before the inauguration of known-racist and sexist Donald Trump, 16-year-old activist Anna Holemans will lead a march for women’s rights in Philadelphia, from City Hall to Eakins Oval. Read more. 

Why Austin's Wheatsville Food Co-op is raising wages, despite delay in federal overtime law

Right before Thanksgiving, as the overtime exemption for salaried wages was about to increase to a minimum annual threshold of $47,476, a federal judge in Texas blocked the changes to the Department of Labor’s Fair Labor Standards Act, or FLSA.

This move preserved the FLSA’s current rules and rates until there could be more discussion. However, many businesses decided to move forward with the new regulations. Read more. 

When Residents Take Ownership, A Mobile Home Community Thrives

If you had strolled one Saturday afternoon through the Park Plaza neighborhood in Fridley, Minn., you might have thought you were at just another block party. The residents were milling around a picnic buffet on folding tables on the street in front of their houses and the American flag. Kids were tossing beanbags and shouting. Neighbors were delivering Jell-O and marshmallow salad, and a pot of pork, cilantro and beans.

But this was not an ordinary picnic. Residents were celebrating the fifth anniversary of a major achievement that could inspire similar communities across the country: The day they began to take more control of their lives. Read more.

He seeks more black men to teach in Philly and beyond

Sharif El-Mekki vividly recalls every black male teacher who ever taught him: two in elementary school, two in high school.

"They were transformative figures in my life," said El-Mekki, a veteran Philadelphia educator.

For 2017, El-Mekki has a goal to organize 1,000 black men to show up for the first day of school, encouraging city youths to be their best.

By 2025, his goal is much loftier: to nearly triple the number of black men teaching in the city. To that end, he has launched the Fellowship: Black Male Educators for Social Justice. Read more.