CHAPTER EIGHTEEN A: THE OFFER ON PAPER
The cooperative’s board met on a Thursday evening to discuss whether the kitchen could remain open after the emergency funding ended.
Jake had expected an informal conversation over coffee.
Instead, Mara placed a detailed budget on the table and asked everyone to review it before speaking.
Mrs. Sloane examined the grocery costs first.
“You underestimated the price of eggs,” she said.
“Again.”
Mara sighed and corrected the number.
Gideon studied the maintenance costs for the vans.
Rosa asked whether the budget included pay for the people who planned the routes.
“It includes the drivers,
” Mara answered.
“It needs to include the planners,” Rosa said.
Jake looked at the figures beside his own name.
The proposed position would give him regular hours coordinating kitchen shifts and deliveries.
It would also pay less than he had earned during the emergency response.
“Can we afford a full-time coordinator?” he asked.
Mara hesitated.
“Not at the rate we want to offer.”
“Then don’t offer full-time hours,” Jake replied.
“Offer what you can pay for.”
Mrs. Sloane nodded.
“And don’t expect him to work the missing hours for free.”
Jake felt grateful for the bluntness.
He had spent years accepting extra shifts at the diner because someone always needed a favor.
The favors had become part of the schedule without becoming part of his paycheck.
Gideon leaned forward.
“What would make the position workable for you?” he asked.
Jake considered the question.
“Four paid days a week, with a clear list of responsibilities,” he said.
“I can find another shift somewhere else until the program grows.”
Mara wrote the proposal on the board.
Rosa asked whether the cooperative could guarantee the four days for three months.
The treasurer checked the figures.
“We can if the food donations stay close to their current level,” she said.
“Then the contract should say that,
” Rosa replied.
The meeting lasted another hour.
They reduced the number of meal days rather than promising a service they could not staff.
They agreed to review the routes every two weeks.
They also voted to create a small emergency fund for workers who lost pay because of a canceled ride.
Jake was surprised when the board asked him to help design the fund.
“I’m the reason we need one,” he said.
Rosa shook her head.
“You’re one reason we know what happened.”
“That’s not the same thing.”
Jake accepted the distinction.
He left the meeting with a written offer and a list of questions for the treasurer.
The black phone had brought a team to the diner in a matter of minutes.
Keeping the team together required slower work and less dramatic decisions.
Jake found that he preferred knowing exactly what he was agreeing to.
