Billy Burdett is one of the founding members of the Dill Pickle Food Co-op (DPFC), which opened at 3039 W Fullerton in Logan Square in December 2009. The Dill Pickle is Chicago's only community-owned grocery store and its goal is to provide the community with healthy, ecologically sustainable and locally produced goods for the most affordable prices possible. Billy has been a DPFC Board member since the co-op's Board of Directors was first elected in November 2006, and he served on the co-op's steering committee for roughly a year before the Board's formation. It was during this time that he worked to develop the co-op's mission, vision, membership structure, and bylaws. He went on to serve as the Dill Pickle's President through 2008 and 2009, overseeing its fundraising, planning, store renovation, hiring, and opening. Billy also has significant co-op and grassroots organizing experience, having co-founded the Oregon Wildlife Federation's Activist Collective and worked as a Hands-On-Owner at People's Food Coop in Portland, Oregon for several years. He hopes that the Dill Pickle will serve as an an example and inspiration to Chicago as a way forward to achieving environmental and economic sustainability, community empowerment, and healthy urban living.
Websites:
dillpickle.coop
dillpicklefoodcoop.blogspot.com
http://gapersblock.com/drivethru/2010/01/07/dill_pickle_co-op_store_signals_new_era_of_chicago_food_cooperatives/index.php
http://resto.newcity.com/2009/12/08/tickled-pickle-logan-squares-dill-pickle-co-op-opens-its-doors/#more-949
http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/food/ct-food-0113-market-dill-pickle-20100119,0,5440602.story
http://www.cornucopia.org/
http://www.logansquarekitchen.com/
