One of the core pillars of the cooperative movement is the support of community. In wake of the destruction from Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, First Alternative Co-op has partnered up with National Cooperative Grocers (NCG) to help raise funds for the Cooperative Development Foundation’s Disaster Recovery Fund, which supports efforts to help cooperatives and their members recovering from natural disasters and other crises or emergency hardship situations.

From Oct. 16-30, you are invited to round up your transaction total or donate any amount at the register to help support these hurricane relief efforts. You can then watch your donations grow exponentially! First Alternative Co-op will be matching all customer donations up to $1,000, and NCG will be matching our donations up to $100,000! That means, for example, that a $2 donation from you will result in a $8 donation to the relief fund, allowing you to have the biggest impact possible.

The Disaster Recovery Fund supports efforts to help cooperatives and their members recovering from natural disasters and other crises or emergency hardship situations.​ They fund:

  • Aid to employees and volunteers of cooperatives and cooperative support organizations to support recovery from disasters or emergencies. Aid can be used towards basic necessities, such as food, clothing, housing (including repairs) transportation and medical assistance (including psychological counseling).

  • Aid to cooperatives and cooperative associations by covering uninsured expenses needed to return the business to viability.

  • Funding is dependent upon fundraising by cooperative sector.

In the last four years, the Disaster Recovery Fund has provided nearly $750,000 in grants to cooperatives, families and communities affected by disasters in the United States, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Uganda, and Ukraine. 100% of funds raised for various disasters and crises go directly to the cooperatives and cooperative associations in need.

Thank you for supporting our fellow co-ops and communities during this time of need!