We are a member-run organization, operating fluidly as a Sociocracy with outside advisors.
Our interim Board of Directors is outlined in our Bylaws and the first elections are scheduled for January 2024. Read more in our blog post in Bylaws & Board >>>
Join us: learn more about what’s needed to lift the website off the ground!
General Circle
(In alphabetical order)
Aggie (she/they). Aggie is a queer writer, producer, and artist from Arizona. She loves art of all kinds and is exploring as many mediums as she can get her hands on. She spends most of her time writing and sculpting. She hopes to open a shop soon.
Elizabeth (she/her), Interim Board Director. Elizabeth (“Lizzy”) is a jack of all trades, master of none at crafting and in life, picking up skills here and there following her neurodivergent brain. She is currently focused on fiber arts; specifically crochet, knitting, and embroidery. She and her husband opened their store in February of 2023 but she has been selling off and on since 2010. You can find her current wares at DragonTree Emporium with more items being added in seasonally.
Erin (she/her), Interim Board Director and Secretary. Erin (she/her) found her niche as a full-time potter, of Stella NC Works after 22 years in personnel roles in the US Army and as a third-party corporate recruiter / small business owner. She finds satisfaction in her extremely hands-on process, endless experimental possibilities where science and art intersect, and exploration of natural and human values in her work.
James (he/him). James is a woodworker, metal fabricator and proud Chicagoan making handmade furniture and home accessories. He started his business, Gokojo, back in 2013 as a side hustle. Within 6 months he left his day job to run the business full time and hasn’t looked back since. When not covered in sawdust at his shop you’ll probably find him cooking in his kitchen and if he’s not there he’s probably at the dive bar down the street. Find him on Etsy.
Mandy (she/her). Mandy is a creative human, illustrator, novice concertina player, tinkerer and maker of all sorts. Her illustrations and what-not can be found on her site and SUBS account.
Mastress (they/them). Mastress is a grassroots community organizer with the Workers Revolutionary Collective focused on systemically humanizing and liberating themselves and others. As a skilled facilitator, multi-disciplinary artist, healer, teacher, visionary, and warrior of love and truth, Mastress is committed to quitting capitalism and getting free to thrive.
Olga (she/her), Interim Board Director and President. Olga is a data nerd studying worker cooperatives by day and a hatmaker by night! She loves sewing almost anything but specializes in 5 and 6 panel hats in her shop, Bean Bros Handmade.
Pam (she/her). Pam is an artist and photographer who is endlessly inspired by the beauty of the natural world. She strives to highlight that beauty in her work and galvanize a sense of wonder and appreciation for the wild around us. Pam creates jewelry, accessories, and gifts with items found on her beach walks primarily in the Pacific Northwest (and also from her travels). She plans to relaunch her online shop in the fall right here on the co-op.
Raffi (they/them). Raffi Marhaba, the person behind The Beat in Between, is a Philly-based artisan making queer and radical handmade goods and everything in between. Their art is meant to cause change and spark conversations.
Robin (she/her). Robin is a maker based in Oakland, CA. By day, Robin leads a mid-size tech startup. Beneath the zoom screen, she knits. And in her free time, she dabbles in painting and ceramics. She plans to open a shop in the summer 2023. Find her on LinkedIn.
Ryn (she/they). Ryn AKA Jirachi is a freelance digital artist and illustrator. They are the proud owner of Tired Fox Art where they sell merchandise of their work. She is one of the organizers for the Artisans Cooperative where she hones her skills drawing chickens.
Thera (she/her), Interim Board Director. Miss Thera is an Educator, Artist and Playwright as well as a passionate neurodiversity advocate. Her shop Atypically Artistic is her safe place to express herself freely without the confines of neurotypical expectations. She is also a Marketing and Communications Director and Consultant and loves the creativity that goes into communicating beyond words. She has worked with multiple non-profits over the past decade as an administrator and board director and is thrilled to be bringing her experience and knowledge to the team.
Valerie (she/her), Interim Board Director and Treasurer. Valerie has over 20 years professional experience as a non-profit director, event planner, project manager for multi-million dollar renewable energy projects, and most importantly, 14 years running an artisan business as one-half of the husband-and-wife leathercrafting business, Walnut Studiolo. She is also a freelance writer. Find her on Medium or LinkedIn.
Advisors
(In alphabetical order)
Danny Spitzberg, Exit to Community Collective (he/him). Danny leads user experience research for a cooperative economy. He has been lead researcher at ownership conversion collective Exit to Community, staffing co-op Turning Basin Labs, and digital services co-op CoLab. Find him on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Medium.
Greg Brodsky and the Entire Team at Start.coop. As a member of the Spring 2023 Accelerator funded by the AARP Foundation, we are grateful for the advice, mentorship, and resources of Start.coop and the nine other cooperatives in our accelerator cohort.
Rachel M Walls, Trunk of My Car (she/her). Founder – Trunk of My Car Cooperative; Maryland licensed attorney; MFA student at Pacific University; Writer; Nature Whisperer; a Soul Whose Intentions are Good…
Shavon Prophet, ICA Group (she/her). Shavon is the Program Director for MassCEO and an Employee Ownership Advocate at ICA Group, the oldest US national organization dedicated to the development of worker cooperatives. Find her on LinkedIn and the ICA Group.
USFWC Co-op Clinic. As a start-up member of the US Federation of Worker Co-ops and a participant in the Co-op Clinic funded by the USDA, we are grateful for the advice, mentorship, and resources of the clinic’s advisors.