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Bill Gessner

Bill Gessner

Cooperative developer and member of the CDS Consulting Cooperative.

Bill Gessner’s involvement in the food cooperative community has spanned 35 years and he is credited with having helped transform the community from a hodgepodge of individual stores into an integrated, values-driven national community of consumer-owned retail groceries that has changed the way America thinks about food. His commitment to developing people, organizations and systems is evident in his record of achievement. He recognized the need for co-ops to share information about operations and best practices and helped found the Cooperative Grocers Information Network (CGIN). He pioneered the concept of establishing food co-op consulting teams by bringing that focus to several cooperative development organizations before becoming a founding member of the CDS Consulting Cooperative. His work has resulted in the creation of many educational and measurement tools and he was instrumental in the creation of the development model which is at the heart of today’s new food co-op development. Recognizing the power of networking and collaboration, he helped establish a Midwestern regional Cooperative Grocers Association to enable that interaction to occur and he was a driving force behind the creation of the National Cooperative Grocers Association.

Francis L. Lair

Inducted: 2002

For more than 40 years, Fran Lair dedicated himself to cooperation. He was instrumental in the creation of Universal Cooperatives and served as its first President and CEO. He continuously extolled the virtues of cooperatives, emphasized the importance of co-ops working together, and encouraged international cooperative trade to levels not previously reached.

He served on the board of MSI Insurance, helping to launch the Mutual Service Fund to provide financial assistance to co-ops for education and development. He also served for 22 years on the National Cooperative Business Association board, and helped organize the Farm Credit Leasing Corporation.

Lair reached out beyond co-ops themselves to promote cooperation. Early in his career he organized “town meetings” to encourage area residents to become acquainted with their local and regional cooperatives. He was one of the early leaders of the Group Health Mutual Insurance Company (now HealthPartners), a cutting edge Health Maintenance Organization. He was also active in the Minnesota Association of Cooperatives’ youth education and training programs.

Perhaps his most lasting contribution, however, was the development of an effective Co-op label that is the pre-cursor to today’s nutritional food labeling.

Lloyd and Mary Anderson

Lloyd and Mary Anderson

Inducted:1993

Lloyd and Mary Anderson are the embodiment of leadership, foresight, and cooperative spirit.In 1938, seeing a need for quality climbing gear at fair prices in the Northwest, the couple formed the Recreational Equipment Cooperative, now knownas REI.In the Co-op’s early years, the Andersons ran the business from their home for no salary.  The basement of their West Seattle house became a factory for ice axes, tents, and freeze dried food. In lean times, they would advance the Co-op interest-free loans to keep it going. Over 50 years later, REI remains committed to the cooperative form of business, and has grown to over 3 million members.  REI is a successful national retailer of outdoor products, and an example of how a well-managed cooperative can be a competitive and successful business.These successes can be credited to the Andersons’ vision and personal sacrifice, as well as their steadfast dedication to cooperative ideals.

Leslie E. Woodcock

Leslie E. Woodcock (1893 – 1974)

Inducted:1980

Leslie E. Woodcock was a founder of Consumers Cooperative Services. He served as a director and officer of his local co-op for nearly 50 years and was general manager of Eastern Cooperatives from 1931 to 1950. He was a director of the Nationwide Insurance Companies from 1939 to 1972, a director and at times officer of the National Cooperative Business Association for 22 years, and representative of the International Cooperative Alliance to the United Nations for 23 years. In these roles he was involved in making important decisions which affected the development of cooperatives in the United States and overseas. He was as a true cooperative statesman.

Robert Neptune

Robert Neptune

Inducted:1980

Robert Neptune graduated from the University of California, where he majored in merchandising and earned a Phi Beta Kappa key in 1936. He started helping with co-op organizations in the San Francisco Bay area, and within a year was manager of Consumers Cooperative Society of Berkeley. After six years he moved on to manage Associated Cooperatives, Inc. For a few years, he managed both the Berkeley and Associated co-ops at the same time. He was also a director of the National Cooperative Business Association for 31 years, serving at various times as vice president and board chairman.

Mary E. Arnold

 

Mary E. Arnold (1876-1968)

Inducted:1976

Prior to 1950, few women had attained executive leadership in cooperatives. One who did was Mary E. Arnold, founder and general manager of Consumers Cooperative Services in New York City. She was a driving force in the organization of Eastern Cooperatives, and was a director of this regional cooperative on two occasions. She served as director of the National Cooperative Business Association from 1927 to 1938 and from 1945 to 1950, and was its treasurer from 1929 to 1939. The cooperatives Arnold helped people organize ranged from housing and food enterprises to fishing cooperatives and credit unions.