COMMENTARY
Committed to our communities
For the 74th time, the nation’s
40,000 cooperatives will be celebrating
National Cooperative Month in
October. The celebration gives us a
chance to share with the rest of the
world what co-op members know: that
user-owned and user-governed businesses
are made to order for meeting a
multitude of needs.
This year the theme is “Co-ops,
Owned by Our Members, Committed
to Our Communities.” The Co-op
Month Committee is urging co-ops to
undertake some educational activity that
helps publicize the impact their business
has on the broader communities in
which their members live and work and
which are served by the co-op.
You can cite jobs created, annual
payroll, sales and property taxes
paid, civic or charitable organizations
supported, scholarship programs
sponsored, something
you’ve done to benefit the environment,
etc. Brain storm for
even an hour with some of your
staff or directors and you’ll be
surprised at just how many ways
your co-op benefits the communities
in its service area.
Add in “big picture” numbers along
with your “local” numbers to give the
public an idea of the scope and impact
of co-ops in your industry. For example,
more than 3,000 farmer and rancherowned
businesses in the United States
create more than 300,000 jobs with a
payroll of $8 billion. Sales of crops and
livestock, value-added products and
farm supplies and services provided by
ag co-ops each year total almost $100
billion. The utility, housing, credit and
consumer co-op sectors all generate
similarly impressive figures.
You can access a full toolkit of publicity-
generating ideas — such as sample
editorials, logos, etc. — that will
help you with your activity at the
National Co-op Month Web site:
www.coopmonth.coop.
For activities, you can get handouts
from USDA Rural Development by
calling (202) 720-8381, or e-mail:
jon.hall@usda.gov. For an overview of
co-ops (best for the general public)
request the “Do Yourself a Favor, Join a
Co-op” brochure. If you want something
more in depth, ask for the “Coops
101” booklet. Both of these are
good for all types of co-ops. For a complete
list of co-op publications available
from USDA, visit:
www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/pub/
newpub.htm.
Co-op Month activities to consider:
- Hold an open house at your co-op,
and have members and employees
on hand to lead tours and talk
about the business and why it
operates as a co-op. Where appropriate,
offer product samples. The
latter can also be done in town, at a
local grocery store, at a fair or carnival,
or wherever appropriate.
- Have a member and/or employee
visit a local classroom, FFA or
4-H chapter. Or sponsor a field
trip to your co-op and (for ag coops)
also have them visit a member’s
farm.
- Write a press release or an op-ed
commentary for a local or regional
newspaper (there are excellent
examples on the www.coopmonth.
coop Web site).
- Work with the governor’s or
mayor’s office to get a Co-op
Month proclamation signed. If
you want the governor to do it,
work with other co-ops, possibly
through your statewide cooperative
association.
- Have employees and members
undertake some public
service volunteer activity,
such as performing
repairs on the home of
an elderly person or
needy family as a gesture
of the “get-it-done-ourselves”
mentality of
cooperatives.
Some of you may be
thinking, “we’re just a
small grain and farm
supply co-op, everybody already
knows what we do.” Remember, even
in a rural town, many people may
know what you do, but may be woefully
ignorant of the fact that farmers
actually own the business and why.
And for most utility co-ops, Co-op
Month is one more great opportunity
to help your members realize they are
not just patrons, but that they are the
owners who ultimately govern it
through the board of directors that
they elect.
Dan Campbell, Editor
