Comments from the Customer Service Counter

I had a wonderful conversation with Don Coleman yesterday. Many things truly resonated with me and made me think. We talked about sincerity and trust, how important it is to establish and maintain them, and how vital each is for the success of our store. It made me think about how much I've learned from people in the past six months and how truly passionate everyone is about their community. I compare it to 20 years in food banking, visiting agencies in Phoenix, Richmond, Miami, Tokyo, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. While each agency was different, everyone volunteering their time at each agency, helping out people in their community, showed the same passion, no matter their differing cultures. These people inspired me everyday for 20 years. The people in our community are just as inspiring to me as those I met across the country and the world!

We also talked about the store, and the staff's roles in the community. While we will be beneficial to our community, Mr. Coleman suggested our role should be to "serve" the community. He's right, serving the community will be a focus of ours, and will be part of our mantra moving forward. Thank you Don, for some great advice!

Last week, we had a great meeting with the Central Virginia African American Chamber of Commerce. We met over 40 African American vendors and service providers interested in selling their products and services in our store. Thank you Ervin Clarke, for coordinating a wonderful meeting! Omari and I will be talking to each over the next couple weeks.

We had a job fair at Mosby Court on Wednesday with great attendance. 45 residents completed applications to work in our store! Our next job fair will be Wednesday, July 11th in Gilpin Court.

Wishing you all a Happy Fourth of July- try to stay cool!

Norm