May message from our Board President

Greetings CreekSide Community,

Our co-op is evolving in so many positive ways – we hope you are starting to notice them.  We are beginning to run more like a business – as reflected in Q1 being a positive quarter (only by a little, but it’s a start).  We are being more responsive to members in our product mix – we get about 20 suggestions a week and staff responds personally whenever we know who made the suggestion.  Last week alone, 4 new products were added as a result of member requests.  And if for some reason we can’t carry a specific product you want, we can almost always special order for you.  We also respond as shopper preferences change and products move in and out of popularity (think chia seeds and kombucha).  Every week, our GM is evaluating what’s selling, what isn’t, what customers are asking for and what vendors can supply – in addition to supporting our mission to provide a wide range of local and organic options.  

Ultimately, our shoppers vote with their wallets (or preferably their EasyShop accounts!).  And we are glad that you do.  In fact, CreekSide is planning a Member Appreciation event starting June 5 and kicking off at our favorite Cheltenham celebration: Arts in the Park.  Look for special products, special offers, special events and special activities throughout the week.  In addition, our Spring Member Meeting will also be held during Member Appreciation Week, on the evening of June 9, 7:00-9:00pm at Curtis Hall.

We know that you appreciate the co-op and our staff as well.  We want to thank you for your patience when we were unexpectedly reduced to only one fully functional checkout lane for a couple of days during one of our busiest weeks in April.  Yet so many of you told me that it was a reminder of how grateful we feel to have checkout lines that are typically so much shorter than at regular supermarkets. 

And there are so many other examples – in fact we are launching a campaign specifically to highlight and share them.  We’re calling it “CreekSide Pride” – look for details coming soon!  While we will continue to solicit and respond to all of your comments, we particularly want to hear about what’s going well so that we can build on our successes.  

Thank you for being a part of the CreekSide community – and see you at the Co-op!

Ben Adams

president@creekside.coop 

Greetings CreekSide Community,Our co-op is evolving in so many positive ways – we hope you are starting to notice them.  We are beginning to run more like a business – as reflected in Q1 being a positive quarter (only by a little, but it’s a start).  We are being more responsive to members in our product mix – we get about 20 suggestions a week and staff responds personally whenever we know who made the suggestion.  Last week alone, 4 new products were added as a result of member requests.  And if for some reason we can’t carry a specific product you want, we can almost always special order for you.  We also respond as shopper preferences change and products move in and out of popularity (think chia seeds and kombucha).  Every week, our GM is evaluating what’s selling, what isn’t, what customers are asking for and what vendors can supply – in addition to supporting our mission to provide a wide range of local and organic options.  Ultimately, our shoppers vote with their wallets (or preferably their EasyShop accounts!).  And we are glad that you do.  In fact, CreekSide is planning a Member Appreciation event starting June 5 and kicking off at our favorite Cheltenham celebration: Arts in the Park.  Look for special products, special offers, special events and special activities throughout the week.  In addition, our Spring Member Meeting will also be held during Member Appreciation Week, on the evening of June 9, 7:00-9:00pm at Curtis Hall.president@creekside.coop 

Parting Words from Outgoing CreekSide Board President, Jeff Rotter:

I heard a wonderful expression a couple of weeks ago while I was listening to WXPN radio. They described XPN as a Community Radio Station, not a Commodity radio station. To me that is CreekSide – a community grocery store, not a commodity grocery store. A place that has become an anchor for the community. A place to gather, buy good food, share good stories, see friends – a place that makes a difference in our daily lives.

I would like to take the next few minutes to offer some personal reflections on being on the Board, being part of this community and to thank a number of people who have helped me along the way.

First and foremost – I want to thank Julie, my family, my close friends and my business partner – for 4 years they dealt with me as I put a lot of time and energy into the Co-op and the community. I am not sure what I am going to do after New Years – Julie and my kids would like me to exercise more, my business partner would like me to spend more time at my day job - maybe I’ll work on my 10 year retirement plan, not sure, but I will have a bit more time than I have had lately.

I want to thank the staff of the Co-op for working hard every day, for creating a sense of community within the store. Ali, Mike, Lauren, Paul, Calle, Ed, Linda, Jessie, Donny, and Martha – you have all been there from the opening. Thank you for carrying the CreekSide banner. I want to thank the community – each one of you for supporting the idea of a community space / a community anchor, spending your shopping dollars and expressing your ideas. You are welcome for the next couple of weeks to continue to express your ideas to me, but after the 1^st, please look for a different yet familiar face.

In Judaism there is a phrase – l’dor va’dor – literally from generation to generation – – we say it at all life cycle events - births, weddings, funerals – we bring our past, our traditions, our knowledge with us to help guide us into our future and to guide future generations.

I want to change that slightly – I would like to say from Board to Board – the value of bringing board experiences forward to help build on the future. I’ve been fortunate to serve with many wonderful, caring, and committed people. I can’t mention all of them, but a few people standout for me from the different Coop Boards I have been on – first Fred Milbert and Adam Silverman – they fought, kicked and clawed their way through legal, financial, construction turmoil to get us to the point of having the physical building and space. As recently as this week I turned to both of them for help with the potential county grant. Andy Schloss –who when we fired our second GM just a few weeks before opening the store – stood up and agreed to be the GM – to be the community face even though he knew those first few months were going to be filled with mishaps, bad starts, and lots of questioning. Peter Denitz – soft spoken yet forceful presence who would call me just to check in to make sure I wasn’t swimming in too deep of waters. Lindsay Rosenberg – she represented the “younger “ community in Cheltenham Township and often provided the balance the board needed – passionate about food, sustainability, about community with an understanding that we often had to compromise to move things ahead. Max Minkoff – the Board president prior to my tenure – he was the person who had to bridge the gap between the “store” in the conceptual sense to the “store” in the real operating sense. Not an easy or forgiving positon to be in.

I want to thank them and all previous board members who have volunteered their time, energy and commitment to make CreekSide happen. Of course there are many community non- board members who gave a lot, offered guidance and support – thank you.

I want to mention something else about Max and his family – Fiddler on the Roof – in February.

To our current Board – please stand up - we have come very far – more than once we were concerned that we would be part of the board that had to put a dreadful sign on the door announcing the closing – Ben, Don, Lisa, Marty, Hillary, Ken, Joel, Deb and Christina – thank you for all your support, your team play, your willingness to stand tall in some pretty turbulent waters. We accomplished a lot together.

We started a tradition when I came on the Board – giving a small token of appreciation to “retiring” board members. We gave those folks a CreekSide jacket. Tonight I get to continue that tradition – Debbie, Christina -- and also we want to acknowledge Art Alexander who passed away this summer. He served 3.5 years on the Board. We will make sure to give this jacket to Elaine.

To the next Board – the newcomers – Jeff, Robin, Rebecca, Burt - we know your contribution and your work will be very different, but no less important than previous boards. We hope the mountain is a little less steep, we hope the in-store leadership is strong and directed, we know the community will continue to support the Co-op. Please use me as a resource where you see fit.

Finally, my family and I lived in this community for 15 years prior to us getting involved in the Co-op. I volunteered to coach kids, I was involved in my synagogue, I played in a local basketball league. Of all the people I mentioned, Fred – is the only one I knew well before I got involved in CreekSide. The Co-op has enriched my life, opened me up to new people and new ideas. I want to thank all of you for making it happen. SEE YOU AT THE COOP

Six Points Brings Kosher to the Creekside Community

Starting this Friday, November 13, 2015, Six Points Foods (a strictly kosher purveyor of high quality food) will be partnering with Creekside Cooperative to bring high quality, kosher food to the northern suburban communities served by Creekside (Elkins Park, Wyncote, Jenkintown and others).

The launch of this mutual effort will start with a Parve (non-dairy) Bakery Program consisting of Fruit Turnovers, Cookies, Danishes and other bakery items – baked daily in Six Point’s bakery facility located in King of Prussia.

In addition to baked goods, Six Points will soon be delivering sandwiches, salads, pies, cakes, specialty deserts, and other refrigerated grab-and-go items. These refrigerated products will be located right next to the sushi case in front of check out cash registers.

A lot of these items will be available as both meat and dairy items and will be properly sealed. Additional items and offerings will be made available in the future.

"Six Points welcomes the opportunity to bring quality kosher food, with a lot of variety, that is portable and convenient to the Creekside Cooperative," said Daniel Dean, Six Points’ CEO. “We are very happy to partner with Creekside - as it is one of our key initiatives to serve the Jewish Community’s culinary needs and desires on both sides of the river. We appreciate the vision and efforts of Stan Brooks, Fred Milbert and other members of the Community to integrate us into their efforts to provide more to their constituents. While our orientation is kosher, we are confident that customers of all backgrounds will enjoy the products and the value – we appreciate the opportunity.”

_______________________

Please join us this Sunday, November 15, 2015 in the store to taste some of Six Points’ bakery items from 11am-2:30pm.

Six Points is supervised by the Community Kashrus of Greater Philadelphia. It is located in King of Prussia, PA.

Great Things Are Happening At CreekSide!

As all of you have heard we are very busy in the store. In the next two weeks we will:

• Finish the first phase of our equity campaign -- $40,000 by September 30th. We are at $21,000.
• Pay-off our old loan of $3 million and replace it with a $600,000 new loan.
• Bring Park Plates to CreekSide. Chefs Locke and Owen, the owners of Park Plates will be working with our prepared foods department to reinvent our menus, fine tune our recipes and continue to develop our prepared foods staff. As interim consultants, they will be will be in the CreekSide kitchen working with our staff making delicious local and seasonal dishes for our prepared foods case and our hot bar and streamlining our kitchen operations.
• Reset the store. Beginning Monday, September 28th through Friday, October 2nd, we will reorganize the grocery department to better serve our customers. We hope to have plenty of staff and volunteers in-store throughout the transition to help you navigate the changes.

Stop in soon to sample the delicious new dishes and see all the wonderful changes!

From Waste Basket To Market Basket

Rather than preaching about wastefulness, why not start withthe satisfaction of good cooking?

EATING ROOT TO STALK -- DELICIOUS THINGS TO DO WITH THE ODD BITS

Chard stems: Cook with red wine, vinegar, sugar and salt for a sweet-and-sour relish.

Carrot tops: Puree with basil, Parmesan and pine nuts for pesto.

Fennel stalks and fronds: Chop finely and saute wiht leeks for a delicate sauce for fish.  Or boil in simple syrup and use to flavor lemonade.

Leeks: Finely chop the usually discarded dark green parts and stir-fry with ginger, garlic, fish sauce and tofu.

Asparagus stems: Save the tough ends in the freezer for stock.  

Apricot pits: Crack them open and find the kernel inside.  Use to infuse cream with a subtle almond flavor.

Broccoli stalks and leaves: Trim and peel the stalks, then shave into a slaw with dressing for feta.

Cauliflower stems: Roast the whole head with tomatoes, anchovies and garlic.

Watermelon rinds: Trim the dark green skin from the rinds, then pickle with lime juice, sugar, vinegar, salt and mustard seed.