Howard Bowers Fund for Consumer Cooperatives

CLICK HERE for the Howard Bowers Awards!
CLICK HERE for information on the CCMA Conference!
CLICK HERE to apply for a Howard Bowers Fund grant!
CLICK HERE to find out more about Howard Bowers Day!
CLICK HERE to apply for a Howard Bowers DAY grant.

The Howard Bowers Fund for Consumer Cooperatives was established in 1993 with an endowment of $50,000 from the Hyde Park Cooperative Society to recognize the commitment and achievements of its general manager, Howard Bowers. The Fund’s purposes are:

1. To promote and develop consumer-owned food cooperatives and consumer cooperative education in the United States
2. To encourage and train people to pursue careers in the management of consumer-owned food cooperatives
3. To provide education programs for staff, board, and managers of consumer cooperatives

The Fund makes grants to food cooperatives and to organizations and events that support the food cooperative sector. Grants are made from contributions and investment income. Money is raised through events at CCMA, the annual Howard Bowers Day in October (Co-op Month), and other contributions from individuals and food cooperatives.

The generosity of the food cooperative community has increased the endowment to over $200,000, made possible two investments into cooperative financial institutions that have loaned this money to food cooperatives, and enabled the Fund to give out over $200,000 in grants. Approximately 20 people attend the annual Consumer Cooperative Management Association (CCMA) meeting every year on scholarships from the Bowers Fund. For information on grants and an application form, click here. For scholarships to CCMA, contact aahoyt@wisc.edu.

Grants given include:

- $5000 to Northcountry Cooperative Development Fund for its Traveling Co-op Institute
- $3500 to NCGA for Marketing Matters
- $5000 to Cooperative Development Services for the Food Co-op 500 flow chart
- $15,207 to the University of Wisconsin-Madison for CCMA scholarships
- $2575 to Harlem Natural Food Co-op for board and management training
- $3000 to NCGA Central Corridor to develop a toolbox for produce managers
- $1700 to the Indiana Cooperative Development Center for a regional workshop on starting a food co-op
- $14,200 total to ten new and about-to-open co-ops for staff and board training

The Bowers Fund manages the Howard Bowers Awards, given each year at the CCMA Conference awards program. Nominations for Cooperative Service, Cooperative Innovation and Achievement, Cooperative Excellence (Retailer of the Year), and Cooperative Board Service will be due in early May, 2009.

Click here for a nomination form.

Click here to see the list of past award winners.

The Bowers Fund is managed by a board of trustees of seven to nine people from the food cooperative community. The trustees set the Fund’s policies and procedures, raise funds, review and decide on grant applications, and oversee the Fund. The current trustees are:

Richard Dines, NCB
Alex Gyori, Brattleboro Food Co-op
Paul Harton, Briar Patch Community Market
Annie Hoy, Ashland Food Co-op
Pam Mehnert, Outpost Natural Foods Cooperative
Bob Noble, Weavers Way Co-op
Karen Zimbleman, National Cooperative Grocers Association

Click here if you are interested in being a trustee of the Bowers Fund.

Howard Bowers dedicated his life to the consumer cooperative movement. In his five-decade career, he worked for cooperatives throughout the Midwest and was in great part responsible for reviving the Cooperative Management Association, which he helped build into the organization for all consumer-owned food cooperatives. He also served on the boards of the Cooperative Development Foundation and the National Cooperative Business Association.

For information on the food cooperative community, see the websites of the National Cooperative Grocers Association,, and the Cooperative Grocers Information Network.

For information on CCMA, click HERE.

For information on Food Co-op 500, a program to create 500 new food co-ops, click HERE.