Membership News - June, 2009

—by Naomi Jackson, Membership Coordinator

Welcome, New Members One fine evening in May, Hampden Park Co-op sponsored a dance to celebrate the opening of our new space and the arrival of gardening weather. On the dance floor on the second floor of the co-op building, 60–70 people danced to Light of the Moon, led through intricate moves by caller Tom van Deusen.

During and after the dance, the word “community” surfaced, as in “the importance of....” I looked it up, correctly guessing that “community” has a dozen definitions. One particularly grabbed my attention: a community is “...an interacting population of various kinds of individuals (as species) in a common location.”

This is a definition most often used by biologists as they describe the interaction of species in, for example, a wetland or boreal forest. However, I think it works well for our co-op. We are many different individuals, including a broad spectrum of occupations, interests, political views, income levels, ages, and cultures. We come together at a specific location, 928 Raymond, for a common purpose, which is to form a cooperative (“an enterprise or organization owned by and operated for the benefit of those using its services”).

You might wonder how such varied individuals can work together for a common purpose. But in the world of biology, it is the vast diversity of species that makes the community healthy. As species go extinct, the wetland or forest community begins to degrade. It is our 2500 members and many friends, in all their diversity, that enable Hampden Park Co-op to be a vital and growing community. Thank you!