Virtual Chicago - April 2006 by Keidra Chaney
		Ask any activist who has ever attempted to organize an event through an e-mail discussion list or bulletin board if grassroots online organizing is difficult, and you’ll likely get a resounding “yes.” Trying to move individuals from virtual participation to real-life action is no easy task, so the burgeoning success story of Dill Pickle Food Co-op is one worth taking notes on. For residents of the Wicker Park, Ukrainian Village or Logan Square neighborhoods, the Dill Pickle name may ring a bell. The co-op has held numerous public events in the past year, including a well-attended art auction held last fall at Spareroom Arts Co-op. Early support from local Websites and online communities such as Gapers Block and Indymedia have helped Dill Pickle increase its visibility in the past few months. After a year of building buzz, the co-op has officially begun a membership drive for 200 members by September 2006, with plans to open a physical location soon afterwards. The co-op, in addition to supplying organic produce and grocery items, will have a firm commitment to supporting local CSA farms and organic products from local business. From the co-op’s earliest days as the brainchild of organizer Kathleen Duffy, online outreach and communication has been a crucial part of Dill Pickle’s organizing strategy, and has helped the co-op grow from a mailing list of a few dozen interested parties to hosting its own Website and message board. Duffy originally came up with the idea of starting a neighborhood co-op in 2000; after having lived in Chicago’s Northwest side for several years, she saw a need for expanded grocery options in the area. (55th Street Food Co-op located in Hyde Park on the city’s South Side, is Chicago’s longest running food co-op.) Testing the waters, Duffy sent an e-mail describing her idea for a food co-op to about 20 of her friends and, to her surprise, received nearly 300 responses. An investigatory meeting was held in January of 2005, about 40 people showed up. “The energy was there, it seemed right to figure out a locus of communication,” said Duffy. A message board was set up on Yahoo!Groups shortly after the meeting. The co-op’s e-mail discussion group currently hosts over 200 members who discuss co-op business – as well as environmental issues, biotech, alternatives to corporate - run groceries and other issues of food activism. Duffy is aware that connecting to those in the area who may not have regular access to the Internet is a crucial part of the co-op’s continuing outreach. “It was on my mind, when I moved (to the area), it made me aware of the problem,” she said adding that by posting flyers and continuing events in neighborhood meeting centers, the co-op’s organizers hope to keep the information flow active to interested community members who are not on the e-mail discussion list. While Duffy says only a “small percentage” of subscribers to the e-mail list are actively involved in the planning, organization and outreach for the co-op, there is no dearth in activity--several fundraising and outreach events, including community potlucks, a rummage sale and the aforementioned art fair have been organized by volunteer members on the discussion list. “The organizing process takes a long time,” Duffy admits, although she is hopeful that the list’s healthy subscriber base will translate into paying members. In the meantime, the co-op organizers are creating a business plan and researching location options, which will be presented to co-op founding members in the fall. “What we’re doing is big, a lot of the work is to set priorities. My priority is to open a storefront, to have the co-op open its doors,” she says. “When it comes down to it, it is a community effort but it’s always a business effort. There’s a balance.” “We’d rather do it right than fast.” For more information on co-op membership and events go to dillpicklefoodcoop.org/ Join the Dill Pickle Co-op Yahoo! Group at foodcoop@yahoogroups.com Check out fuckcorporategroceries.net for more information on grocery alternatives
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