Teresa Meza

Owner #2118

(staff)

Why did you join the Dill Pickle?

I joined the Dill Pickle to support a local business. I believe in the cooperative model, and had been an owner-member and worker at the Sugar Beet Food Co-op for years so I knew how much the equity support meant. I joined at the time that DPFC was fundraising to expand to the new location and I wanted to see them achieve their goal. 

How have you participated as an owner?

I have participated as an owner as a shopper, by attending board meetings and voting in elections, and I have served most recently on the owner linkage committee which helps the board communicate with and serve owners. As a staff member, I participate in daily operations as a member of the Leadership Team, and help support projects that connect the Dill with the community. 

Why do you wish to serve on DPFC Board of Directors?

I wish to serve on the Board because I believe I could contribute to improving the health of the Dill. I have a strong interest in cooperative economics, experience volunteering for  and working in co-ops, and would enjoy learning more about and participating in the governance structure. 

What perspectives, skills, experiences, or affiliations do you hope to bring to board leadership?

I hope to bring many perspectives to the Board. First, there is my perspective as a worker-owner. Second, as someone who is from the west side (I grew up in Hermosa neighborhood, later Oak Park. I've lived in Humboldt Park, Bucktown and currently Logan Square) and as someone who is a Mexican-American mixed race woman who is from a working-class family, I can give perspective of place.  

I also hope to lend my perspective gained from an interdisciplinary education, in which I focused on food sovereignty through the study of social movements, political economy, community organizing, the chemistry of food and its interaction in the body. 

I have many skills to bring to the table, skills in project management, events coordination, fundraising, and non-profit management. I have worked several different departments and roles inside of the cooperative model grocery store which gives me the skills needed to understand the co-op as an organizational whole. My experience as a buyer at Sugar Beet Food Co Op also gave me the skills to understand margin reports and understand relationships with vendors and suppliers. I have skills as a volunteer manager as well as skills in creating and  conducting focus groups to foster community-directed projects. 

I have strong relationships to bring to the board. Through my various non-profit and volunteer work, I have created affiliations in many different types of communities, artists, organizations, businesses and vendors by creating and planning events, advocating and fundraising. 

how might the co-op open its doors wider to prospective new owners and community members?

I believe the co-op can open its doors to new owners by meeting people where they are, serving the needs of the community in the way they want to be served, and starting the conversation about participation from there. Establishing a Culture of Listening in order to better understand where those ‘doors’ may be and who may have closed them in the first place. 

Anything else you’d like to share?

Black Lives Matter. Trans Lives Matter.