The bread cooperative and the municipality

Sounds like a nightmarish name for a fairy tale! And I guess it could have been…

Once upon a time, Jen had an interview on Friday afternoon, but 30 minutes before it was to start, it got canceled. SO…being recourceful as she is, she called her friend Arvil who had previously invited her to a very important meeting for his comedor (I am just going to start using that word for soup kitchen, so you all are going to have to learn it!). So in a flurry, so as not to be late, off she went!

The purpose for said meeting was for an official of the municipality to come and test the nutrienal quality of the bread that they made, because they are attempting to start a bread cooperative where they sell the bread, not simply give it out to various comedores. Arvil is writing a grant to get money to buy them the bread machine that they need as start up capital. The people from the government were also coming to verify the existance of the comedor, since apparently there have recently been a series of discoveries that opperations were posing as comedores, getting food from the government, and then turning around and selling it. So this meeting was extremely important for the comedor, to get noticed and for the soon to be bread cooperative, and of course for Arvil.

So off Jen and Arvil went to attend the meeting. Here is a little video of the woman of the cooperative making some sample bread for the officials. (note, they don´t look terribly worried or stressed…they just do what they do with an air of confidence)

The meeting went well. The officials were shown all over the comedor´s garden…

And then they all sat and talked and tried the bread, and listened to the complaints and concerns of the comedor. It was a learning process for both sides, and the dialog seemed to benafit both.

After they left however, all the secrets of conspiracy and mistrust of government came pouring out. One of the people had been with the other governmental party before, and had come in conflict with the comedor, and then had switched sides when this government took power…and he had been sweet talking Arvil, saying he would help get them a bread machine, and trying to draw a political line around the comedor or the bread coop. The comedor is explicitly NON-political. Jen found it quite fascinating to watch and then to have picked apart for her afterwards.

So the story has a happy ending, because they discused some of the issues with the system with the politician and hopefully will be heard, and the women seemed to have gotten their bread production approved! And then all lived and ate bread (the bread is FANTASTIC!) happily ever after!

I do love a happy ending!