About our Board

The Board of Directors develops guiding policies for the Co-op, assures performance and fiscal responsibility, provides a link to members, and helps define the broader vision of the Co-op. These responsibilities are spelled out in our Policy Governance Manual and our By-Laws.

Directors serve three-year terms. Elections for open seats are held in conjunction with members’ Annual Meeting in the Spring. To serve on the Board and to vote in the election, you must be a Co-op member in good standing. Learn more about what is involved in serving.

Board Meetings

Willimantic Food Co-op is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Register: Annual Meeting 2025 Zoom
Time: May 21, 2025 06:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting

The Board meets at 7:00 pm the first Thursday of the month.

Due to the rapid expansion in COVID cases, we will meet virtually this month.

Access Community Action Agency, 1315 Main Street, Willimantic, CT 06226
This is the building next to Super Stop and Shop, where Planet Fitness is now. The entry door is facing Valley St. despite a Main St address.

Webb Hall Conference Room, West & Eastern Rds, Willimantic, CT 06226

Webb Hall (rear entrance) rm 113, Eastern Rd, ECSU Campus, Willimantic, CT 06226

Webb Hall Rm 159 (1st fl rear), Eastern Rd, ECSU Campus, Willimantic, CT 06226

WorkMode Office Space, 109 Valley St Suite B, Willimantic, CT 06226

Kerri Gallery, 861 Main Street, Willimantic, CT 06226

Horizons Office, 45 Church Street, Willimantic, CT 06226

Trigo Wood-fired Pizza, 744 Main St, Willimantic, CT 06226

866 Main St, Willimantic, CT 06226
(Use side entrance for The Annex above Swift Waters Artisans’ Cooperative for meeting upstairs)

104 Nathan Hale Rd, Coventry, CT 06238

89 Spring Street, Willimantic, CT 06226

NOTE: The Meeting scheduled for July 4 has been postponed and rescheduled for July 11.

NOTE: The Meeting scheduled for December 6 has been postponed and rescheduled for December 13. The location has changed (for this month only) to: Access Community Action Agency, 1315 Main Street. This is the building next to Super Stop and Shop, where Planet Fitness is now. The entry door is facing Valley St. despite a Main St address.

NOTE: The location has changed (for this month) to: Access Community Action Agency, 1315 Main Street, Willimantic, CT 06226. This is the building next to Super Stop and Shop, where Planet Fitness is now. The entry door is facing Valley St. despite a Main St address. Note that anyone attending should prepare to mask.

NOTE: The time has changed (for this month) to 6:30-9:00 starting a half hour earlier than usual.

NOTE: The location has changed (for this month) to Remote via Zoom as described in the posted Agenda.

NOTE: The location has changed (for this month) to Remote via Zoom due to the weather. Please use the contact form on this page to request the link.

Meeting Agenda for October 2, 2025

Previous Meeting Agenda

The Board is developing the following master calendar that includes when policies need to be monitored as well as other events that occur throughout the year.

Meeting Minutes Archive:

Willimantic Food Co-op – Board of Directors’ Meeting

Click on a date to view or download a PDF document of the meeting’s minutes:

Annual Report Archive:

Click on a date to view or download a PDF document of an Annual Report:
 
Annual Report 2024
Annual Report 2023
Annual Report 2022
Annual Report 2021
Annual Report 2020

Meet the Board

Board of Directors:

Matthew Coolbeth – Chair (2026)
Matthew grew up in Ashford and Mansfield and first became acquainted with the Co-op while living in Willimantic as a student at the University of Connecticut, from which he holds a BS and MS in Computer Science. He has 16 years of experience as a software engineer and 6 years of experience as a parent. Matthew believes the Co-op is an important institution that helps define the character of the Willimantic Region and serves the local community in myriad ways. He also sees community-scale organizations and local, small-scale agriculture as crucial means of building a more ecologically-friendly global society. When he is not working, Matthew reads about obscure programming languages, frets about ecological degradation, and tromps around in the forest with his kid.


Hannah Moore – Vice Chair (2027)
Hannah has been part of the Willimantic Food Co-op community for her entire life and is honored to now be giving back through Board service. She is passionate about sustainability and received a degree in Environmental Politics, Policy, and Economics from Mount Holyoke College. During this time, she was particularly interested in sustainable food systems and spent a few summers working on local farms, solidifying her appreciation for local, small-scale agriculture. Hannah is now the business manager of an environmental consulting company focused on lake management. Hannah lives in Mansfield with her husband, two cats, and many tropical fish.


Brock Alosky – Treasurer (2026)
Brock has been around the region for his entire life and currently lives in Tolland with his wife and dog. He first became a member when he was studying for his undergraduate degree at UConn and has been a frequent shopper of the Co-op ever since. He believes that local agriculture and sustainable food practices are paramount to healthy living and that it allows people to fully live their lives. Brock holds a BA in Economics from UConn and his MBA from Purdue University. When he is not working Brock enjoys a good hike, fly fishing and cooking.


Tomasyn Goode – Secretary (2028)
Tomasyn grew up in Ledyard and moved to the area in 1996 to attend UConn, from which she holds a BS and MS in Environmental Economics. She works as an instructional designer for National Co+op Grocers (NCG), where she has learned a lot about the food co-op economy. Tomasyn has been a member of the Co-op for more than 20 years. She lives with her husband in Coventry, where she likes to experiment with whole-food, plant-based cooking.


Peter Kirk – Director (2027)
Peter has resided in the region for 28 years, and the last 7 in Mansfield with his wife and step son. The Co-op drew his attention based on its principles particularly supporting local vendors and being kind to our environment. He is involved with several community based non-profit organizations and holds a BS from Merrimack College and MBA from Assumption University. When time allows you can find him running 5 and 10Ks as a member of Run 169.


Katherine Gavin – Director (2028)
Katherine, who lives with their partner in Willimantic, has been a member of the coop for about 6 years. They first served on the board while gaining their Master’s of Social Work at UConn, and now works for a mental health provider in the community. Before that Katherine worked for non profits such as Outward Bound and Foodcorps, an Americorps program committed to providing well rounded food education and community gardens to schools across Connecticut. Katherine appreciates that the coop provides the Willimantic community with local, high quality food and loves their commitment to sustainability. In their free time Katherine enjoys rock climbing, kayaking, skiing, and cooking.


Stephanie White – Director (2028)
Stephanie grew up in New York’s Hudson Valley, and went to college in New Hampshire where she earned a BA in English Literature and Journalism. Stephanie moved to Windham in 2012 with the AmeriCorps program Teach for America, and has been a customer and enthusiast of the co-op since then. Stephanie taught English at Windham High School before joining EASTCONN, where she now secures and manages equity grants. Outside of work, Stephanie serves on the Windham First Taxing District Board. In her spare time, she enjoys running, hiking, long-distance backpacking, horseback riding, skiing, pottery, painting, and volunteering as an instructor with the Appalachian Mountain Club.

Joanne Todd – Director (2025)
Joanne Todd grew up in Willimantic and lives in Scotland. She believes that the Food Co-op is important to the Willimantic Community. She is privileged to serve on the Board and contribute to the Co-op’s vitality. Joanne is President/CEO of Northeast Family Federal Credit Union, a member-owned financial cooperative where she began as a teller. She holds a BS in Accounting and a MBA from the University of Connecticut.

Directors – WFC Staff:

Patty Smith (General Manager) – Director – Management seat
Patty has been a Co-op member since 1996 and a Co-op employee since 2007. She started by implementing the Co-op’s first computerized point-of-sale & inventory management system, then went on to develop HR and other management infrastructure alongside Alice, eventually becoming the Operations Manager in 2014. Before her career as a cooperative grocer, Patty was a Subway franchisee in Eastern CT with her husband, Andy and a professional dancer and dance instructor, with a BFA in classical dance from the Boston Conservatory. In 2022, Patty graduated from the Master of Management, Cooperatives and Credit Unions MBA program at Saint Mary’s University in Nova Scotia. She lives in Mansfield.


Kathe Gable – Director – Staff seat (2027)
Kathe has been a member of the Willimantic Co-op since the mid-’80s and became a working member after decades in a career of public relations and health promotion. Kathe is a part time front end staff member who enjoys contributing in many ways to our community and to the Co-op’s mission. She and her husband raised their two sons in Mansfield; they enjoy family time, healthy living, being outdoors, hiking with their dog, and music.

Key Personnel:

Kimberly Montoya – Board Scribe

Get Involved with a Committee!

The Co-op needs members to serve on committees to guide the direction of our Co-op. If you have skills or expertise with a particular committee and want to help make a difference or help move the Co-op toward the goals set by the board, call to be included in the next committee meeting. Even if you are just considering it, give a call and sit in on the next meeting. Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to participate.

Bryan O’Hara (2017)
Bryan O’Hara is a local vegetable grower at Tobacco Road Farm in Lebanon. The farm has supplied the Co-op with produce for more than 20 years. Bryan strongly believes in democratic member involvement in Co-operative governance. He considers himself a Co-op enthusiast.

Debra Pallatto – Director (2026)