"Re-Localization and Transition: What It Means" by Gus Frederick Silverton Food Co-op Owner #3572/6/2021  FischerWagon: Horse-drawn delivery wagon for Fischer Flouring Mills. (1890s)  Julius Alm’s grocery story, North Water Street. Displaying a variety of local organically grown fruits and vegetables. Or as our grandparents referred to them, “fruits and vegetables.”(1915) When the community of Silverton was founded in 1854, the location we know by that name today had been a site of human habitation for countless millennia. The state highway known as 213 like so many other thoroughfares, stared out as major trails and roads for the First Nations. The Euro-Americans for the most part simply widened these existing trails to accommodate horse-drawn wagons, and eventually automobiles. Over the course of fifty years, those original inhabitants succumbed to a variety of diseases that killed nine out of ten individuals. The survivors, whose traditional cultures had been shattered, were shuttled off to reservations along the coastal mountains west of their original homelands. Those first nations experienced a dramatic societal transition: A sudden and unexpected shift in reality. But their routes, trails, and roads remain. A silent testimony to ancient commerce. Ironically, the peoples who replaced them in this space were on the verge of their own societal transition. For thousands of years, the speed at which humans could travel great distances was determined by the speed of a horse on land, and the strength of the wind at sea. Then humans discovered steam power. More precisely, they discovered how to harness its power. This became possible through the advent of new materials and the processes used to create them. This transition took a bit over a century to become firmly implanted in society. But it soon was replaced with even faster and more efficient devices once liquid petroleum was found to be more efficient than solid chunks of coal. In 1854, Silverton officially became a community with a Post Office, but it was created according to the old, pre-steam paradigm. Travel was still pretty much limited to horsepower, although steam-powered riverboats provided transport of large, bulky, and over-sized loads. Communities sprang up along the Willamette River at locations suitable for riverboats to land. With horse-driven wagons completing the journey. Silverton was more than 15 miles from the river. By horse wagon, this meant at least a couple of hours or more, depending upon road conditions. When the steam-powered trains arrived in the 1870s, the transitional shift from horse to steam power was complete. Supply chains switched from wagons and riverboats to rail with centralized locational hubs. Horse-power was still used extensively at the local level to deliver the goods to the final destination like in the Riverboat days. Silverton was geographically fortunate to be located where it was, along the old Klamath Trail which hugged the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. Silverton’s “hay-day” as a market town was from the arrival of the narrow-gauge railway in the 1870s to the post-World War II era. During this period, goods and services were very much local. With several active lumber and flour mills, agricultural product canning, and the support services required to keep it all running. As a rail hub, the town acted as a conduit to the world. Raw goods shipped out, and processed commodities shipped in. And most of the day-to-day commodities such as food, were produced locally. Multiple small grocery stores in various neighborhoods provided fresh, locally grown organic fruits and vegetables. Several local dairies provided milk products, and multiple local butchers provided that service. The local support scene also included such obscure services as printing and graphic arts. Local artists created labels for locally produced products. Local engineers created and serviced machines required in the lumber mills and local farms. And as if like frosting on a cake, all this was documented by a robust local media community. Several newspapers, professional photographers, and artists helped record the story of our town’s history.
 Silverton Blow-Pipe factory. They created all the ductwork and vents for the Silver Falls Timber Company. (1912) After World War II, another transitional period began. Horses were out of the picture except for recreational and aesthetic purposes. Rail use was greatly reduced, while petroleum-powered automotive “Internal Combustion Engines” (ICE) became ever more efficient. It soon became more “cost-effective” to ship goods by ICE-powered trucks instead of rail. With the expansion of the highway systems, it likewise became more “cost-effective” to centralize the goods and services that use to be provided at the local level. Telecommunications technology further accelerated our current bout of transition. This one, like the others, is defined by energy. But not a specific type of energy, but rather a source of energy that is renewable, sustainable as well as “clean.” Unlike fossil fuels that are noticeably warming the planet. With the ability that we have today, of networked computers that fit in our pockets, we can instantly communicate with any other person with a similar device anywhere in the world. Everyone it seems has a “phone.” A quaint hold-over term from the 19ths century, when being able to speak to someone miles away at the end of a wire seemed magical. Now we don’t have wires. Likewise, anyone can be a photographer, graphic artist, journalist, and filmmaker with the right app. It also means that those photographers, graphic artists, journalists, and filmmakers that made a living doing that, now compete with anyone with the right app. Newspapers are being replaced with digital feeds that attempt to simulate the old print, but just don’t quite make it. Texting and instant Messaging are replacing voice. And now with the new COVID-driven paradigm, these technologies are being pressed into service in many new ways. And then there’s the “Social Media…” These are all tools. And how one uses the tool is key. You can build a house with a hammer, or you can hit someone over the head with one. The key challenges we see in the coming years can be addressed in part by an increased emphasis on “re-localization.” Not just in food production, but in other services as well. This boils down to a single word: Community. We recognize that as tough as it will get, it will be much tougher without community. This process has been happening more and more as folks want to learn how to reconnect with their communities, neighbors, and food!  FischerMill: Silverton location of the Fischer Flouring Mill, where the Library and Historical Society currently reside. (1890s)
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 Promoting Positive Leadership and Integrity
Terrence Shanigan is Alaska Native and his cultural roots descend from a small Aleut village along the Aleutian Chain. His mother and maternal grandparents instilled an appreciation for family and culture by teaching him the traditional way of life while encouraging a bridge to a more forward-looking life outside of the village. A United States Navy veteran, Terrence followed in his grandfather’s footsteps and strongly believes in service to others. He developed a persistent determination and strong self-discipline from his mother and grandfather who consistently modeled a good work ethic and a strong ability to problem-solve. Terrence is creative, an exceptional communicator, and possesses an effective ability to innovate and think outside of the box to solve challenging and complex problems. Terrence believes that the intrinsic pursuit of life-long learning is an essential component of his success. His appreciation for learning led Terrence to earn his Bachelor’s degree in Education in 1996, and in 2017, he retired early from a career in law enforcement to complete his MBA which he earned in from Louisiana State University in 2019. His spirit of exploration led Terrence on 1,000-mile humanitarian dog mushing expeditions in the Arctic, guiding Brown Bear safaris in Alaska, SCUBA photography in the Philippines, and travel to thirty countries. Terrence’s professional experience is broad and spans several entrepreneurial endeavors to more commonplace institutional positions. He is often sought out by Governors, U.S. Senators, State Legislators, and community leaders for policy expertise in public safety, organizational performance, education, and economic development. Terrence relies upon what he learned as a teacher, tribal council president, performance auditor, executive director, Alaska State Trooper, and legislative aide. His devotion to volunteering has led him to work with numerous charities over the past twenty years. “Operation PAWS” is one such humanitarian program he created as an Alaska state trooper where Terrence and his sled dogs mentored at-risk youth. The program eventually grew to homeless veterans, victims of sexual assault, and families impacted by suicide. Family, Aleut culture, faith, service to others, life-long-learning, and building strong personal relationships are the values Terrence believes will lead to continued success, opportunities, and a sense of fulfillment. Terrence is currently the Chief of Staff for State Senator Mike Shower of Alaska. Terrence is excited to be an owner within the Silverton Food Co-op (owner #752) and looks forward to meeting his neighbors in the Silverton and the surrounding areas as he works to help raise the capital resources needed to build a Silverton Food Co-op store in our community. 
Neighbors Helping Neighbors - Blog Post by Stacy Canterbury, SFC Outreach Coordinator and Owner #7045/29/2020  Sticker given as a thank-you gift to one of our SFC volunteers at the Silverton Farmers Market My favorite co-op principle is #7: Concern for the Community. One of the best reasons to start a co-op is that it can become a business whose bottom line benefits everyone and where profitability isn’t exclusively defined by income. Silverton Food Co-op is already making this principle a reality. Our community has been hard hit by the twin crises of COVID-19 and business closures, so right from the start our SFC volunteers stepped up to help. Here are some recent highlights from this effort:
In March, our Outreach Coordinator began hearing about elders and immunocompromised folks who could no longer access groceries and household supplies safely. Along with other long-time volunteers, she started organizing free pickup and delivery services for this vulnerable group. Later that month, one of our newest members Vivienne Frankel, along with other community members began “Feeding Silverton’s Essential Workers”. The Silverton area donated over $7600 to buy food from local restaurants and businesses which helped keep them afloat during the shutdown. Then meals, snacks, vouchers, and donations were delivered by SFC members and other community volunteers to say “thank you” to those hardworking people who continue to make enormous efforts to keep us healthy, educated, and safe. Meals and snacks went to Silverton Hospital staff, first responders, school district employees, city staff, and others lifting everyone’s spirits. As a healthcare professional, Kalia Miller knew what a shortage of face masks could mean for Silverton and the surrounding area. And as an SFC Board Member, she embodies our community mindedness. So after long days at work, she began her second shift as a mask maker, giving her hand work away for the benefit of all. Other Silverton Food Co-op members donated fabric and elastic, making this a true community effort. When area grocery stores began experiencing supply disruptions, we started getting requests on social media for a list of area Farmers and Food Producers that sold directly to the public. Our Board President and Outreach Coordinator—along with our fabulous new Marketing Team—greatly expanded and edited our webpage directory, linking it to our public “storefront” and owner’s Facebook pages. The Marketing Team also began a new social media story series, called “Spotlights”. These are free ads showcasing local farmers and businesses, connecting our membership and the whole community with healthy, local foods. These are just a few of the ways that Silverton Food Co-op is supporting our communities through this moment. We want to continue our growth as a trusted community business. Do you know of other ways that SFC can help? Contact community@silvertonfood.coop with your suggestions!  My three kids and I have been enjoying sharing some great food stories over the last few weeks via messaging and talking on the phone. I've had to cancel trips to visit all of them due to the pandemic, which means I am not traveling to all kinds of great food destinations, including Chesapeake Bay at Norfolk, VA, the San Francisco Bay area, and Boise, ID. So, no oysters and blue crab for me this spring! No chic New American cuisine in Palo Alto, and sadly, no down home Basque comfort food in Boise. But we have always been very connected through food, so for us, that discussion has just taken on a new form. A month ago, we started conspiring about how to get flour delivered so that our shared obsession for bread and cookie baking could go on. That evolved into talking about impacts to the food industry as both my daughter’s husbands manage restaurants and have been struggling in their careers for over a month. Here in Silverton, I think we are really lucky that our food system is still working pretty darn well. I compliment our store merchants whenever I get the chance and am delighted that I can still walk into one of our local food outlets and outdoor farmers market to get fresh produce, or have my whole grocery order packed up and delivered to the back seat of my truck! Several of our local restaurants have done an outstanding job converting to "carry out" business, which is remarkable and worthy of praise and patronage! What my kids and I have had the most fun with though, is sharing food and cooking stories from our homes. We do a pretty much daily check in on what's cooking for the day. I am a "waste not, want not" kind of guy. That means that I am always trying to devise some creative way to use that last scant half cup of corn meal I have stashed in the back of the cupboard, to add to a banana bread or meatloaf! Or maybe fabricate some dumplings out of a cup or so of masa for the split pea soup I made with everything that was left in the refrigerator. I am not joking about the dumplings I made out of the last bit of masa that I had in the back of the cupboard, and here's the photo to prove it! In Español these are called Chochoyotes. I recommend this recipe from Pati Jinich: https://patijinich.com/chochoyotes-corn-masa-dumplings/ I encourage you to share your food and your food stories with your family, your friends and your neighbors as a balm for your soul in these challenging times. Next to a big chunk of chocolate and planting a garden, it’s the best thing I’ve found to generate positive energy and stay connected with my loved ones both near and far!
I enjoyed reading this compact book about the history and current issues revolving around our food supply. Grocery Story is not a big book, but it is a pretty intense read, full of data and case histories, so I had to read it a couple chapters at a time and then set it down to digest and cogitate for a day or two. Steinman has “been there and done that” in the food world, and in many ways this book parallels my own lifelong interest in food. In the present format of retail food all over America, stores strive to wring as much marginal profit from their goods by working with the food giants to buy products that give them an economic edge. “Be Attentive” are the watch words for anyone entering a big box grocery store, is what my dad told me many years ago when he was still working for A&P, one of the grocery giants that Steinman writes about in his book, “Make a list. Be on guard, stay aware, and don’t give in to aimless wandering down the aisles unless you have to get something on your list. All of the fresh food is on the perimeter of the store and so long as you stay out there, you can do all right.” Things like shelf position, aisle location, product packaging, and forcing us to “hunt” for a product we want, are all ways we are manipulated once we walk into a store. When you add advertising and clever packaging, it is tough to feel like we have any discretion or connection to our food supply. The current COVID-19 pandemic highlights some important issues if the so-called supply chain is broken. Presently, due to reduced demand from the restaurant and institution food businesses, big industrial agri-businesses are dumping milk and plowing under crops that have no destination. Steinman gets down into the weeds on how this “system” operates and how it is dysfunctional and unsustainable. As I read this book, I could not help reflect on how the current pandemic has put a point on why massive industrial farms linked to a global transportation network based on fossil fuels is not a local consumer-centric enterprise. It too often does not serve the needs of the individual, their family or their community. I must tip my hat though to our local grocers, which have done a pretty darn good job of staying open, rationing scarce products, and providing a safe environment for shoppers, including online shopping. So, I’d like to give a shout out to them and their employees! The second half of Grocery Story focuses on the good news, which is that there is a long history of an alternative way to get food to our tables and it has been operating successfully for a very long time. Steinman writes elegantly and emphatically about the motivating factors for starting and sustaining a local food co-op, and he has really done his research on the subject. He uses several case studies to explain how a co-op works, the role it can play in community health and well-being, and also serve as an incubator of small business and truly sustainable local farming. Providing good jobs for our community is another really positive result of having a co-op. Steinman highlights how many of the endless opportunities to make community connections over food can be such a positive force locally. How the co-op engages in its community is only limited by the owners’ imagination. I highly recommend this book to all of our co-op members as an interesting read on grocery store and food supply history and evolution, and the options available to us regarding how it gets from the farm to our kitchen. Shopping at a co-op is really fun and can also anchor a community, generating positive energy that radiates throughout. The Silverton Food Co-op will be fine tuned in to what our community wants and needs. This book gives us a glimpse of how it will work and evolve over time once the “doors open” and we are up and running! Co-ops are like a big simmering soup pot of positive energy and as a result they foster and promote good eating and nutrition. This book gives readers a vision of what that is like. Believe me, I have lived in communities large and small with a food co-op for the past 51 years and it really does make life better! It will change our lives directly and at other times obtusely but in an up-beat way purely due to luck and serendipity. And best of all, WE OWN IT!!  A co-op owner profile of Samantha, DJ and Maddie MacIntyre, owner 91.
Why did you join the co-op? We joined the co-op because when we moved here from Seattle, we were surprised by the limited access to local products in Silverton even though we are surrounded by farms. Living with a chef, food plays a dominate role in our household and we are passionate about supporting such an important investment in our community. What is something that you love about Silverton? I love the feeling of coming home from work and driving into Silverton. It seems like it’s own little world. It is obvious that so many others love this town too. I have never been in a friendlier place where so many volunteer their time and energy to civic and community development. What is your favorite vegetable? My favorite vegetables are French breakfast radishes. My dad grows them and they are an amazing addition to just about anything.  A co-op owner profile of Jeff, Courtney, Ben, and Ole Basile, owner 229
Why did you join the co-op? We know a lot of local farmers and the co-op offers us an opportunity to access them and support them. What is something that you love about Silverton? We love the melding of the tight knit community, that is both rural and artisan. What is your favorite vegetable? Ole: Cucumbers. Ben: Carrots. Courtney: Butternut Squash. Jeff: Brussels sprouts. Photo courtesy of Whitney Ulven Photography  A co-op owner profile of Brittany and Glenn Beyer, owner 98
Why did you join the co-op? We joined the co-op to support all of the wonderful family farmers in the area who grow such delicious food and all of the amazing people who are working tirelessly to make this vision become a reality for this community! What is something that you love about Silverton? We absolutely LOVE this tight-knit community of loving and caring people. As a family of five new to the area, we were welcomed with open arms. What is your favorite vegetable? Glenn: Green beans. Brittany: Broccoli. Photo courtesy of Whitney Ulven Photography  A co-op owner profile of Dana Smith & Victor Madge, owner 32
Dana Why did you join the co-op? I LOVE the farmer’s market in the summer and want that access more than just one morning a week. The thought of Silver Falls bread, Fisher bacon and Gardenripe heirloom tomatoes and lettuce all together on one beautiful BLT makes me salivate uncontrollably. It also seems pretty special that I’m on a first name basis with the producers. As an engineer and an elected official, I am acutely aware of the fragility of our built environment. When the Cascadia Subduction Zone slips, our transportation and communication networks will be devastated. There will be higher priority locations for restoration of services. Having established local food suppliers makes our community more resilient. What is something that you love about Silverton? My favorite thing about Silverton is the sense of community. It was evident from my first encounter almost 20 years ago and has only gotten stronger. What is your favorite vegetable? I don’t really have a favorite vegetable. I love tomatoes in the summer, Brussel sprouts in the fall, beets in the winter, and greens in the spring. Victor Why did you join the co-op? I feel the need to become a better global citizen and to reduce the carbon footprint I leave in my wake each day. Keeping my purchases local whenever possible helps to reduce, in an incremental way, the amount of fuel spent transporting food and produce from literally around the world to the supermarket. I believe that if this movement were to go worldwide, we could wrest control over at least a portion of our purchasing from big corporate interests, who only have interest in their bottom line. I believe there is a revolution happening—an evolution—to a local market economy. More and more people are opening their eyes to the reality that our planet has limited resources and that we need to use them wisely. This consciousness is growing, and I am very proud to be a part of it. Photo courtesy of Whitney Ulven Photography |
AddressPO Box 1742
Silverton, OR 97381 |
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Local Farms.
Sustainably Grown. Healthy Food. Accessible to All. |
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