JOIN OUR COMMUNITY | Elmer's Community

Who should become an Elmer’s member? YOU!

Members are people from near and far who love Elmer’s. EVERYONE will be welcome to be a customer at the restaurant or attend events, whether they are a member or not. Members will get special benefits, and will help support and sustain Elmer’s long term. Curious if you're already a member? Check the list at the bottom of this page!

Member Benefits

One custom mug per individual or family membership. (Mugs will be available for pickup at Elmer's later this spring!)
Receive a 10% discount on private event reservations once the building re-opens
Your name(s) will be included on a list of members online and at Elmer's!
Attend a members-only annual community celebration where we will listen to good music, eat good food, celebrate the volunteers who have sustained Elmer’s during the year.
Vote in the election for new Board Members
Receive regular updates about news and events at Elmer's, including opportunities for volunteer opportunities

Cost to Join

We hope that all who are able will contribute the membership fee, since proceeds will go directly towards final renovations and getting the building and kitchen back open! However, we ALSO want to make sure that anyone who wants is able to become a member of Elmer's.

The full cost for a lifetime membership is $99 for individuals and $199 for families.
The membership form has sliding scale options as low as $10 (individual) and $25 (family). Choose what works for you!
If you donated previously and want to count your donation towards your membership, you can request that option on the membership form. (All requests for this option will be honored.)

Join Now!

Who should become an Elmer’s Community Steward? Also YOU!

Community Stewards are super volunteers, who sign up to play an important and ongoing role in bringing Elmer’s back to life and keeping it healthy for the long term. Stewards have the opportunity to bring their own ideas and passions to Elmer’s!

Community Steward Benefits

All of the benefits listed on the Member page.
Receive the door code to get into the Elmer's building, for the purposes of completing volunteer service.
Reserve Elmer's for one private event per year at no cost.
Eligible for nomination and election to the Elmer's Board after one year of service (in good standing)
Attend quarterly meetings with the Elmer's Board - coordinate, share ideas and feedback, and get insight about organizational operations, successes and challenges!

Commitment

Community Stewards make an annual commitment to contribute a minimum of 2-8 volunteer hours a month. Tasks and areas of responsibility will be agreed in advance with the Elmer’s Board based on the individual’s interests, capabilities and the needs of the organization. Some of the things we know we need an have imagined so far include:

Staffing events and the community center (opening the space, making coffee)
Supporting with ongoing maintenance (snow removal, landscaping, small repairs)
Cultural and artistic organizing (running a monthly event, managing a revolving art show)
Community outreach, documentation and storytelling about the project

Community Stewards also commit to an annual financial or resource donation at a “personally significant” level - that could range from $5 or donated cleaning supplies, to $5000 and new siding for the exterior of the building.

Finally, Community Stewards commit to sign an Honor Code, attend an orientation session, and attend quarterly meetings with Board Members and one another (see above)

Sign up!

Who should become a Board Member? Eventually YOU!

In US nonprofits, “Board members are the fiduciaries who steer the organization towards a sustainable future by adopting sound, ethical, and legal governance and financial management policies, as well as by making sure the nonprofit has adequate resources to advance its mission." (Learn more about general rules and responsibilities of nonprofit boards.) At this time, since the Elmer's Community Center, Inc. has no paid staff, the Elmer's Board also oversees and/or takes care of completing all of the day-to-day tasks of running the building and the organization, managing relationships with tenants, etc.

The current board is comprised of people who volunteered early in the process (beginning September 2022!) and who have put in countless hours of time to fundraise, buy the building, make needed renovations and repairs, and put systems in place to reopen. In October, 2024, we'll elect our first new board members. Although they will not yet have served for a year, any active Community Stewards who have served at least three months will be eligible for election this first cycle.

After that point, the board will establish 1) term limits and 2) a plan to gradually rotate current board members out of service. Beginning in October 2025, any Community Stewards who have served for at least a year will be eligible for election. The aim is to ensure that there is deep continuity of care and knowledge, while providing opportunities for many members of the Elmer’s community to serve as leaders.

Board Benefits

Board members get to be part of a group of dedicated, amazing humans who together bring the vision of the Elmer’s Community Center to life. It’s fun (for real!) even if it’s a lot of work. Board members also have full access to the Elmer’s community center spaces, records and systems. They may use the space when use will not compete with tenant use, regular or scheduled events.

Commitment

Board members commit significant time and energy towards making Elmer's available as a resource to our community!

3-8 hours of meeting time per month
8-10 hours of additional labor per month - sometimes significantly more - in one or more of the following areas:
- Event planning and management
- Building cleaning, renovation and repairs (planning, sourcing materials, managing volunteers, physical labor)
- Fundraising - making asks, managing communications, deposits and acknowledgement letters
- Communication with community members - directly, and via website, social media and email, writing Ashfield news columns and creating video content
- Organizational management - board coordination, financial and legal systems creation and management
- Creative visioning and design

THANK YOU!!!

The current Elmer's Board is:

Ariel Brooks, President

Kath McCusker, Treasurer

Elizabeth Gray, Clerk

Liza Manchester

Derek Matias

Dave Russo

You can reach the board by emailing: elmerssteeringcommittee@gmail.com

NOTE: Nan Parati was a long-time board member, but stepped off the board when she became our collaborative restaurant tenant as a co-owner of Wicked Good Cafe!

Active Community Stewards:

Alex Osterman

Christina Gabriel

Christopher Seward

Delta Carney

Ashley and Julia Gamble-Adams

Heather Abbott Gray

Hannah Jarrell

Robert Zeller

Curious if you're a member? Here's the list!

This list auto-updates when new people register, so if you don't see yourself you are not a member, but you can sign up above!