Community Cooperative: Caring and choice in a time of need

Kinfay Moroti
·2 min read
Deb Nelson, a volunteer at the Community Cooperative in Fort Myers, helps Anthony Armstrong shop in the Cooperative's community market in Fort Myers recently.
Deb Nelson, a volunteer at the Community Cooperative in Fort Myers, helps Anthony Armstrong shop in the Cooperative's community market in Fort Myers recently.

Note to readers: This is the third part in a three-part series looking at the impact the Community Cooperative has on Fort Myers.

Deb Nelson watched Anthony Armstrong with worried eyes.

Standing outside the Community Cooperative recently, she hoped Mr. Armstrong would make it home safely. Dodging traffic on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard is challenging for the sighted. Mr. Armstrong was making the crossing while pulling a cart of food and tapping his white cane.

"I'll be okay," Mr. Armstrong assured Deb, as traffic parted for him like the Red Sea did for another man of faith millenniums ago. Less worried now, Deb went back inside the Cooperative's community market to help others shop for food.

The choice model allows Anthony Armstrong and others to select their own food, which reduces food waste.
The choice model allows Anthony Armstrong and others to select their own food, which reduces food waste.

Nourishing lives

Foods that stretch fill the community market's shelves. Peanut butter, jelly, rice, dried beans, canned meats, cereal, and oatmeal are staples. Fresh vegetables, meats, dairy products, water and juices fill nearby stands and freezers. However, the most satisfying and sustainable thing the market provides isn't food. It's choice.

Deb, one of more than 70 volunteers, assists 300-plus people a month in choosing food, instead of receiving a box filled with items they may not use. This choice model greatly reduces food waste and creates opportunities for meaningful friendships.

"I've gotten to know so many great people," Deb says. Mr. Armstrong is one of them. His ability to live a full life despite being blind is inspiring she says. Her daughter has a similar challenge. Deb admires them both.

Mr. Armstrong and others can shop the market — which is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. — once a month after talking with a Cooperative social worker. Other needs are often identified during this initial meeting.

Deb Nelson, a volunteer at the Community Cooperative in Fort Myers, helps Anthony Armstrong make his way home after shopping in the Cooperative's community market in Fort Myers recently.
Deb Nelson, a volunteer at the Community Cooperative in Fort Myers, helps Anthony Armstrong make his way home after shopping in the Cooperative's community market in Fort Myers recently.

Despite the urgent efforts of the Cooperative to feed Southwest Florida's hungry, the need is rising like a relentless tide. "I didn't know there was such a need until I started volunteering five years ago," Deb says. Community food drives, food bank purchases, and private donations are stemming the tide for now.

I hope our community can endure the surge.

I'm grateful the Community Cooperative and other organizations are on the shore.

Learn More

What: Community Cooperative in Fort Myers

Phone: (239) 332-7687

Address: 3429 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. #4403, Fort Myers, FL 33916

Web site: https://communitycooperative.com/

About the author

Kinfay Moroti is a visual journalist and creator of hopeful images, an initiative that helps nonprofit and community organizations tell their stories. He is also a partner at the Collaboratory in Fort Myers. Kinfay worked at The News-Press/USA Today Network from 2005-19. He is a U.S. Air Force veteran and father of two. Connect with Kinfay on Facebook (Kinfay Moroti) or email (hi@hopefulimages.com)

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Fort Myers Community Cooperative doing everything it can