Dear Member-Owners –
I am so excited to be your new GM!
For those who don’t know me, my wife Kellie and I have two sons, 15 and 16, and we have been living within walking distance of the Co-op ever since our first apartment on Madison Street almost 20 years ago. I served on the RAFC board from 2018 to 2024, including a short stint as first facilitator in 2021-22 when we had to become intimately involved in Co-op operations. For the past 15+ years I have been working in education, most recently as the Director for Vermont Adult Learning’s Rutland Learning Center where we help adults build skills to get their GED or HS diploma and help new neighbors learn English. Also for the past 15+ years I have been deeply involved in community building work. I served on Rutland City’s Board of Aldermen for 6+ years, on the Downtown Partnership board for 3 years, on the Rutland Redevelopment Authority off and on over the past 10 years, and as a founding committee and board member for Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum for 10 years.
I sought this role as your GM because I believe we’re ready for the next stage of growth and I believe my skill set is the right mix of knowledge, experience, and passion to make it happen. We have a full and engaged board, we have an excited and engaged staff, we have a state of the art point-of-sale system, we’re part of NCG after years of pursuing it, and most importantly, we have new coolers and freezers!! I’m looking forward to working with this staff to meet the targets we need and to continue to provide outstanding service and products to you.
Please stay on the lookout for opportunities to share your ideas and opinions with me and our team. I am a strong advocate of continuous improvement and I will be soliciting your feedback often. This is after all your store and we want to make sure we’re doing the best we can to meet your needs.
With immense gratitude,
Chris