In my profession as an Episcopal priest, I have the opportunity to work with young people and am one of the leaders of our church youth group. One of the themes I have been trying to develop just a little over the past few months is how we take responsibility for the gifts we are given through our stewardship of our environment, both our social environment and our ecology. I have been emphasizing concepts like consumerism, sustainability and fair trade. When I saw that The Richmond Food Co-op was opening, I was delighted to be able to become a member and to “walk the walk” in these areas.
Of course, I have my own reasons for joining as well. I do want to live the life I extol, but I also want to be able to purchase the things I need with some assurances. I want to know that the product hasn’t traveled a great distance. I want to know that the persons on the other end of the transactions are getting a fair price and can pay a fair wage. I also want to save money myself!
It’s not that often that we get a chance to benefit personally from behaving altruistically. Being a firm believer in the reasonableness of mixed motives, I am happy to become a member of the Richmond Food Co-op and invite my fellow humans to do the same!
-Herbert Jones, Richmond Food Co-op Member/Owner
