Starting in 2024, the Change for Change funds at the register for the month of October will now be going to our Twin Pines Cooperative Community Fund, interest generated from this fund is given back to our community in the form of our Grow Fund.

The Benji Project’s LGBTQ+ Pride Camp Reunion has been selected as this year’s recipient of the Food Co-op’s GROW Fund (totaling $1485). 

The Benji Project hosts the only LGBTQIA+ youth (12-18 years old) summer day camp on the Olympic Peninsula. This year (2024) was their third year hosting this week-long camp.

Pride Camp attendees and their families have asked how they can stay connected and feel an ongoing sense of community during the year. In response to this request, The Benji Project will host a Pride Camp reunion of past camp participants and their families, along with friends in the LGBTQ+ community.

The reunion will take place in March 2025, at a midway point between camps. This will be an opportunity for campers to reconnect and to expand their sense of community with friends and families, and it will also provide an introduction for campers’ LGBTQ+ friends who might want to join future camps.

This half-day event will include social time as well as facilitated connection activities and mindfulness practices, including an intentional tasting of local food. The Benji Project will be reaching out to local LGBTQ+ farmers and chefs to explore how they might want to participate, to share food and discuss their roles in the community. Their participation will reinforce the sense of community, giving teens and their families an appreciation for how local LGBTQ+ residents contribute in all kinds of ways to the health of the community.

The importance of Pride Camp shared by a participant’s parent!

“The Benji Project has made a very real and significant impact by giving my child/teen a tool box full of tools to use to guide her in all that comes with going from being a child to a teenager in this difficult time. I am extremely grateful that we have this amazing resource in our community for kids in this age group–this world just seems to be getting harder to navigate for all of us, let alone for our teens. For my child, she seems to need consistent reminders of ways to navigate stress and how to make safe spaces for herself within her own circle and within the world at large. The Benji Project is one of the places that she gets help with these reminders.”

The Benji Project teaches mindfulness and self-compassion tools to young people and their families and communities. Through classes, workshops, and camps, we build capacity for stress management and emotional resilience. Their approach uses the Mindful Self-Compassion for Teens curriculum, which teaches core principles and practices that help teens respond to the challenges of these critical years with kindness. Research findings from this program indicate increases in emotional well-being and emotional resilience after taking the course.

To learn more about The Benji Project please go to: https://www.thebenjiproject.org/

The Food Co-op’s Community Engagement Committee (comprised of staff, board members, and members) especially likes how the Project aligns with many of our values: participation, love, respect, and inclusion. It is also one of our four pillars of community sharing – healthy kids and families!

The Community Engagement Committee (CEC) organizes activities involving member-owners and the board, including the annual general member meeting (AGM), demos, and member forums.

The Community Engagement Committee is seeking two members-at-large to join our committee. Service is for one year (November 1, 2024 – October 30, 2025). Meetings are weekdays, during the day, once a month and in person.

Please apply by October 15, 2024 at, https://www.foodcoop.coop/board-committees