“This store saved me from having to go somewhere else,” Carol Svatos says with tears in her eyes of the newly formed Valley Foods Cooperative in Lynch, Neb. “I had to get someone to take me out of town to get groceries. I have a few health issues, so I don’t feel safe when I drive out on the highway. Now, I just pop uptown and get a few things.”

There’s an accord of head nods to Svatos’ sentiments as shoppers stream into the store on a busy Saturday morning, all greeted by their first names. The northeast Nebraska farming town of 212 is a tight-knit community. So, when Lynch’s only grocery store closed in March 2019, townspeople mustered a plan to keep dollars local.

Making it happen

“If we were going to have a store, we needed a building,” says Janie Fisher, a retired 83-year-old nurse. Fisher secured the purchase of the former grocery store building and joked that some of those first conversations convened at the local watering hole. “I just walked right up to Dave and asked, ‘What do you think?’” she recalls.

David Barnes, the store’s volunteer general manager, says, “Lynch is 70 miles to the nearest Walmart, 45 miles to the nearest stoplight and over 20 miles round trip to the nearest grocery store.” Barnes credits much of the co-op’s startup to support from Nebraska Extension.

Lynch resident Martha Nelson contacted Rural Prosperity Nebraska and inquired about the co-op process. A co-op involves multiple people owning a business, uniting to meet everyday needs.

Nelson says, “The steering committee met every Thursday night for 14 months. When the building needed updates, local contractors came forward that donated time and labor.”

“We kept the community informed with weekly updates in the local paper,” Barnes says. “We surveyed the residents and received a 45% return on those interest surveys; 75% of those said that a grocery store in Lynch was very important to them, and 70% said they would spend grocery dollars in Lynch.”

A capitalization drive kicked off in June 2021 with a minimum goal of $75,000 in stock sales. “We spoke at the Lynch Alumni Banquet. That’s when we saw a surge,” Barnes says. “Still, the biggest worry for folks was that we wouldn’t get a supplier. Here we had the money lined up, but no supplies.”

Supplies become a reality after partnering with Associated Wholesale Grocers to add Lynch to its route. “The truck comes on Wednesday; we have four to five volunteers help stock shelves,” Barnes adds.

Open for business

On Feb. 4, Valley Foods Cooperative opened its doors to the public. Barnes recalls, “On opening day, I was told this is a huge deal. I suppose, opening a closed business in a town of 200 people is a big deal.”

The store’s opening was especially big for David Kalkowski, Lynch resident and former banker. “If there was no store, we needed to chase 15 miles one way or 25 the other for groceries. This store has everything I need. I would go out of town and stock up for a week. Now, I can get fresh meat.”

Garland Gehlsen is a regular in the store, sometimes multiple times a day. “Store was closed a year and a half, and I don’t drive,” says Gehlsen, the former bowling alley owner.

Barnes shoots back with a laugh to Gehlsen, “There’s no limit to how many times you may visit.”

For Svatos, the co-op goes beyond the necessary food she needs. She values the camaraderie and gathering place that is the heart of a small town. “I’m in here three times a week, and I get to visit with the girls, too,” she says. “I’ve known them since they were little kids. And I like to be around people.”

The spirit of Lynch continues to come together for the greater good of its residents. To date, Valley Foods Cooperative has $97,500 in stock with 140 member-investors. The town boasts a swimming pool, bowling alley, telephone company, hospital, elementary school, two doctors and a volunteer movie theatre. And now, a grocery store.

“The success of the store has exceeded far beyond what we thought,” Barnes says. “If the project is right, the people will support it. This project was right.”

For information on Valley Foods Cooperative, visit valleyfoodscooperative.com.

Wortmann writes from Crofton, Neb.