Steve Sendar
The Co-op has been an integral part of our daily life since we moved to Ashland 25 years ago supporting the rhythm of our family life which emanates from our kitchen where four generations of us have gathered to create nourishing food and lasting memories. In addition to providing us with high quality organic ingredients to nourish our bodies, we love that the Co-op makes efforts to support local farmers and artisanal food and beverage purveyors, and that it has made conscious efforts through the years to create an energizing and supportive work environment for its employees. Best of all, we have taken many people and beneficial life changing ideas into our hearts while picking apples in the produce department, filling our to-go boxes at the deli, conversing with cashiers at the checkout stand, and working on special orders with knowledgeable staff members.
I have enjoyed a varied and deeply satisfying professional life these past 30 years which has included working in commercial real estate development, long term health care, restaurant and commercial food businesses, brick and mortar retail, and technology as a business owner and consultant. In addition, I have had rewarding experiences serving some wonderful local organizations as a board member, mediator and consultant including the Geos Institute, the Siskiyou School, and the Ashland Food Coop. This diversity of experiences has helped me to expand my capacity to understand the nuances of financial statements - and how to use the data in conjunction with anecdotal information from staff and customers about their needs and desires- to create organizational systems which support the success and job-satisfaction of dedicated employees and the happiness of guests. Said another way, my career has been about participating in business and non-profit activities that are about people helping people find meaning and happiness in life and creating – and at times failing to create- the economic architecture needed to sustain these endeavors.
Why do you want to serve as an AFC Board Director?
The Co-op has been an integral part of our daily life in Ashland since we moved here 25 years ago. Having access to high quality organic food, shopping at a co-op where we know our dollars will be spent in support of our local economy and the region’s artisanal food movement, and living in a community of people who embrace a holistic vision for personal health and the health of the environment are “must haves” for our family. Needless to say, the Co-op has served us increasingly well in these ways over the years, and has made it easier to live in alignment with these core values than we expected possible back in 1998. In addition, the Coop has always been, for us, the social hub of Ashland, the place where we bump into our friends and talk about our children and grandchildren, politics, music, travels, food, and health, the place where we hear about issues of importance to us. Best of all, we have taken many new people and life changing ideas into our hearts while picking apples in the produce department, filling our to-go boxes at the deli, conversing with the cashiers at the checkout stand, and working on special orders with knowledgeable staff members.
In short, I have come to know and care deeply about many of the dedicated employees, vendors, and shoppers who make the Co-op special and give life to the ways in which business is a force for good in our world. I see board service as a chance to give back to those people who make the Co-op feel like home and to support them in keeping the Co-op way of life vital for my children and grandchildren and their friends. And, I have an abiding affinity for supporting businesses and NGOs that believe it essential to provide a social contribution to their communities as a primary objective of their endeavors.
What experience, education, training and/or skills make you particularly qualified to serve on the AFC Board of Directors?
I have been a principal in dozens of businesses over the last 30 years, and more than 20 real estate projects, and have a good facility for business math and an understanding of financial statements. I was a founding developer of the Siskiyou School and served as president of the board for 7 years and am currently serving my 13th year as treasurer of the Geos institute. I served on the AFC Board for one year beginning in the fall of 2015 and concluding in the Summer of 2016. During my career, I have facilitated many successful transactions and negotiated a wide variety of contracts including leases, financing instruments, purchase and sales agreements, employment agreements, partnership documents, labor contracts, and by-laws. I am also a trained mediator and have mediated or co-mediated about 100 cases through Mediation Works and around the Rogue Valley.
What key opportunities do you think AFC faces?
While I think there are a number of key opportunities ahead for AFC in terms of adding efficiencies and growth opportunities on the current campus and possible expansion beyond Ashland, I think that the most important opportunity for AFC is to reap the benefits of re-energizing the staff after all of the challenges wrought by the stress of the Pandemic and the leadership transitions which have occurred in the recent years. What have the staff learned from the new demands of the job created by the labor and product shortages and Covid protocols in these difficult 36 months that would benefit AFC going forward? In what ways, if any, has morale suffered and what can the staff- not just the department heads and team leaders- articulate that will help complete the picture of what to build on in the coming years?
I acknowledge that the Board may well have undertaken this sort of inquiry and is working with the information to inform future plans for AFC. In which case I look forward to learning what those learnings have been and what, if anything, may change or support the growth of AFC in the future. These questions live in me because, as a near-daily shopper at AFC for 25 years, a singular part of the magic has always been the passion and knowledge, and joy of the staff which has inspired me to learn more, make changes in my eating choices, and appreciate that people working at AFC are committed to making the world happier and better as they work. And, the way in which outstanding employees have been supported in following their interests in pursuing new jobs within the store, leadership roles within the store, and bringing their creativity and joy to how things are done and helping guests have the experience they find only at AFC.
What is your experience/history with natural and organic foods?
In 1986 I worked in a restaurant in Pennsylvania that was run by a chef who was dedicated to organic, locally raised vegetables, fruits, and meats. His food tasted better not only because he was an incredible chef, but, I realized in time, because the ingredients were organically grown. I also noticed I felt better when I ate at work. In 1987 my brother was diagnosed with brain cancer and that began my commitment to eating organic foods in earnest. After moving to Pennsylvania in the early 1990s after marrying my wife, Linda, we were without access to any sizable storefront coops where we lived, so we got together with a few friends and created an old-fashioned meet-the-trucks-just-off-the-highway-exit ramp- and-store-the-stuff -in the-shed sort of coop for our families until some local grocery stores began to make a significant commitment to organics. We have never looked back since the late 1980s.
