Wedge Community Co-ops

Wedge Community Co-ops
  • About
    • Board of Directors
    • Careers
  • Shop
    • Wedge Lyndale
    • Wedge Linden Hills
    • Delivery
    • Co-op Curbside
  • Sales
    • Fresh Flyer
    • Co+op Deals
  • Community
    • New and Now
    • Events
    • Cultivate Newsletter
    • Change Matters
    • Donations
    • Email Signup
    • Co+op Explorers
    • Recipes
  • Ownership
    • Become an Owner
    • Co-op Affordability
Search

LORI ZUIDEMA FAREWELL

April 24, 2023

Share

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • email

THE LORI STORY

At the end of this month we say farewell to Lori Zuidema with gratitude for all of her accomplishments and contributions to Co-op Partners Warehouse (CPW) and the Midwest Cooperative movement.

Early on, Lori found her footing with the original Seward Co-op back in the 70’s. Her activism in the anti-war movement, ecology and feminism created a path to her involvement with the cooperative scene (which had roots and connections to all three of those movements!)

Beyond her humble volunteer beginnings at Seward Co-op (and as an original collective member of Seward Cafe), her resume includes: working for the Cheese Rustlers, starting as the Operations Manager and becoming the General Manager for Roots & Fruits (when it was a worker owned cooperative), and then shifting her employment over to Co-op Partners Warehouse where she has been Director of Business Development, Office & Sales Manager, Purchasing Manager and Senior Manager of Strategic Initiatives.

Her work trajectory is a great example of how she feels that co-ops offer employees (especially women) a path to leadership roles.

One of her favorite memories at CPW was meeting Frances Moore Lappe, the acclaimed ecologist and author of “Diet for a Small Planet.” Frances was on a speaking tour of the Midwest, and stopped by our warehouse.

She also smiles thinking back on how the original retail co-ops were almost entirely bulk bins – not a lot of packaging, and members dutifully brought their own containers for everything.

Lori knows that food hits right to the core of equity issues – sourcing, distribution and sustainability. Working to build a food system that values cooperation over competition has strongly appealed to her sensibilities and her hope is that co-ops will continue to nurture small producers and push for ethical food production.

Image 1: Lori Zuidema at Co-op Partners Warehouse, 2023

Image 2: Lori Zuidema at Seward Co-op, 1972

Upcoming Events

« December 2023 » loading...
S M T W T F S
26
27
28
29
30
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
Thu 07

Dec 10% off Quarterly Coupon

December 6 - December 12
Fri 29

Fresh Cut Friday – Save 10%!

December 29

New and Now

  • 10% off Coupon- December 2023 December 5, 2023
  • DECEMBER ROUND-UP: NORTH COUNTRY FOOD ALLIANCE December 1, 2023
  • 20% off Gifts & Home Goods November 28, 2023
  • Vendor Spotlight: Frog Tree Farm November 22, 2023
  • 2023 Co-op Gift Guide November 20, 2023
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

  • Hours
  • Stores
  • About
  • Contact
  • Careers
  • Co-op Partners Warehouse
  • Data Policy
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn

Copyright © 2023 Wedge Community Co-ops. All rights reserved.

https://wedge.coop/lori-zuidema-farewell

This website uses cookies for necessary functions and to enhance your browsing experience. Learn more in our Data Policy.

Accept & Continue