About
We Are a Community Owned Grocery Store
We’re a community of working people, creatives, innovators, strivers, survivors, immigrants and Chicagoans that are working hard to open our OWN grocery store, so that we can:
- Keep money here in our neighborhood, rather than fill corporate grocery store coffers
- Contribute to creating a food supply chain that is transparent, just, and accessible to Midwest farmers and producers.
- Provide fair paying job opportunities in our neighborhood
We are building a community owned grocery store.
And we want you to join us!
Why Community-Owned?
Cooperative (co-op) ownership is a solution for individuals to create powerful social and economic change in their communities.
At the co-op,
- All Owners have equal access to voting for a Board of Directors – more money doesn’t mean more power.
- Store profits go back to the community – not to some out-of-town corporate headquarters.
- The best part is that we own it, we build it, and we benefit from it – right here where we live.
Our Mission
A vibrant community where people, planet, and our prosperity are connected through food.
Our Core Values
Community
Celebrating community by providing a safe, welcoming, accessible grocery store.
Local
Selling affordable, healthy, local, and organic food that reflects our unique neighborhoods.
Sustainable
Supporting sustainable agriculture and transparent sourcing in our business practices.
Empowering
Ensuring fair, ethical, sustainable, and empowering practices in everything we do.
Economic Power
Increasing economic power in our workplace, in the community, and in the local food system.
Our Board of Directors 2024
Our board of directors is a devoted group comprised of 5 elected volunteers who serve for 3-year terms.
Stephen Johnson
President & Treasurer
Stephen retired to Chicago in 2011 following careers in academia, public accounting, and manufacturing to live within 1/2 mile of his two sons and their families. He brings to the board experience in financial and managerial accounting, corporate governance, and strategic planning.
Mary Meyer
Vice President & Founder
Mary is the co-op’s Founder. She brings a wealth of experience centered in community organizing in the Financial and International Fair-Trade sectors. Her passion for the co-op is unmatched as she turns out for every co-op event, and will happily meet any interested party for coffee to discuss Wild Onion Market at length. This passion is also expressed through her leadership on the Board.
Meryl Davis
Secretary
Meryl’s passion for food and food justice was ignited by her high school senior capstone project on food waste and redistribution methods. In the years since, she’s studied and worked in multiple sectors centered on food access and local food systems. Meryl believes that addressing food inequity requires deep systemic changes that include multi-faceted strategies, like food co-ops! She’s excited to bring her professional and academic experience to the Wild Onion Market as the Board Secretary. Meryl graduated from Knox College with a Bachelors in Anthropology and Sociology and a minor in Environmental Studies. In her free time, she enjoys playing competitive ultimate frisbee, finding good chai lattes, and trying new restaurants in the city.
Jillian Jason
Board Member
Jillian’s mission is to give individuals and communities a voice in their food supply chain. She believes this is only possible when producers, growers, distributors, and retailers practice transparency. Jillian’s goal is for the co-op to be a welcoming place where the community can come together to embrace quality food. She hopes the store will work to instill a sense of trust between valued producers and conscious consumers.
Lisa Gibbons
Board Member
Lisa is committed to putting her effort and experience into disrupting the broken food system in the United States to create an alternative business model for healthy food production and distribution. She has over 25 years of experience in instructional design, user experience, and working in start-up education ventures and higher education. Lisa is an Openlands’ TreeKeeper, avid early morning lakefront exerciser, and enjoys cooking as a creative outlet.