LACE + Louisville Community Grocery Win Unprecedented Local Grant, Announce COVID-Safe Communal Holiday Campaign, Celebrate Black Friday with Black Market

 For once in 2020, a whole bundle of positive, nonpartisan news that everyone can celebrate. So let’s get down to the good stuff.

 I. $$$

 This week, as the Louisville Community Grocery prepared for our holiday outreach campaign, we were notified by the Community Foundation of Louisville that we’ve been given an unprecedented, five-figure, one year general support gift that will help us make our dream of opening our inclusive cooperative store early next year.

 From CFL: “We have been watching your work and impressed with your progress. We look forward to continuing to work with your team.” Thank you CFL!!!

 II. $3.5M

 We are honored to have the support of such a renowned organization as CFL, especially as we roll up our sleeves to respond to Metro Council’s RFP for our $3.5M funding. There has already been an outpouring of public sentiment that the city funding should certainly go toward our yearslong project, and CFL’s support only strengthens our resolve. Don’t believe us? See this tweet!

 III. 12 Days of Cooperation

 Meanwhile, on Tuesday 11/24 we are launching our first ever holiday outreach campaign: The 12 Days of Cooperation. A play on the 12 days of Christmas, we will be hosting twelve educational, gifting, community service, and celebratory offerings, mostly free of charge, from Black Friday through Christmas Eve. Click here to see the full list of activities, each tied to a different element of our mission and values, many featuring local Black and other minority-owned businesses, like minded organizations, and serving those most in need in our city.

IV. BLACK FRIDAY + SMALL BIZ SAT – NOV 27th + 28th 2020

 Black Friday is taking on a new and much more poignant meaning this year, as Louisville Community Grocery board member Shauntrice Martin proudly unveils the soft opening of her radical solution to food apartheid: Black Market KY. 

 The Louisville Community Grocery will be turning out with bells on to support this revolutionary Black woman in her new endeavor. You’d better support too!

 Want to hang with us two days in a row? We’ll be at LIBA South’s Small Biz Saturday Stroll at 7105 Southside Drive from 11-3pm.

 V. GIVING TUESDAY – DEC 1st 2020

 The Tuesday after Thanksgiving is every nonprofit’s favorite day of the year: Giving Tuesday. Take advantage of putting your “giving” dollars to work by becoming a member of LACE, the Louisville Association for Community Economics, the non-profit managing and cultivating the growth of the grocery. This is just the first of many ambitious projects that LACE will be launching in the years to come.

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 Quotes from our leadership on these undertakings:

 “Because I will not be hosting or going to have dinner with family and friends, I will use this Thanksgiving as a time to reflect on everything that has happened this year.  Despite the social, health, and political challenges there is much to give thanks to.”

 -Thomas Wayne Edison, President of the Louisville Community Grocery Board

 “Thank you to CFL for investing into our collective vision of creating a cooperative grocery store. As a young person, I’ve seen many of my peers invest into the co-op by becoming member owners and seeing the vital need of it in our community.  We definitely want more young people involved and engaged with the co-op.”

 -LuTisha Buckner, Louisville Community Grocery Board Member

 “Celebrating the holidays is different this year. Even though most of my family lives within walking distance, we’ll celebrate virtually from our individual homes. Family is about knowing that even in a pandemic, there are people we love who we want to keep safe. I am grateful for our health & happiness.”

 -Shauntrice Martin, Louisville Community Grocery Board Member + Black Market KY Founder

 “Money is tight, and times are hard. I want every single Christmas gift and card I send to be full of intentionality and meaning, and support a greater good. That’s why literally all my gifts are coming from our 12 Days holiday campaign lol”

 -LA MARKS, Ownership Advocate

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