Sheila has called Long Beach home since 1992 and joined the LBGCo-op as Owner #004. Sheila dove in whole-heartedly in 2020 wearing several hats to help the movement along.

Dodie Reddington is a long-time resident in Long Beach, CA sharing her home with family and three cats. She generously volunteers for several non-profit organizations, is an active member of numerous museums and cultural centers and enjoys nurturing and harvesting her “mini farm” of fruit bearing trees and vegetable garden.

Currently, Dodie is the Director of Finance for an AV integrator with an extensive background that includes experience in operations, event planning, project management, and business administration. She loves Long Beach for its rich history, diversity, culture, and sense of community. Having the grocery co-op will make all of those things even stronger.

Levi Curtis-Switzer has lived in the Long Beach area since 2014 and has always loved the diversity, community, growth, and progress of the city. He currently works in the grocery industry, having built a career over the past 8 years after stepping away from his time in entertainment.

With several years spent working directly with the teams at independent grocery stores across southern California, the opportunity to help build and open a Co-Op in his favorite city was a no brainer! Levi looks forward to growing the community and access to healthy food options for the residents of Long Beach and can’t wait to see the success of our store!

Dr. Kelly Whitten is a long-time resident of Long Beach, has lived in myriad neighborhoods, and loves them all. She grew up around agriculture in California's Central Valley, where her mother's side of the family had a dairy that was run by her grandpa and his brothers, and then her padrinho, who now crops pistachios. Her father's side of the family had a successful machine shop that worked with numerous agricultural and industrial businesses such as Haagen Dazs, Anheuser Busch, and Gilroy Foods, as well as several local farmers, individuals, and small businesses.

It was ingrained early on that service and helping our neighbors was the job of all good community members, and Kelly has chosen to be involved in multiple volunteer opportunities aimed at improving the lives of those in need of connection. Kelly has worked in education for over 20 years, and has had multiple side hustles such as private chef, bartender, party planner, and pet sitter. She loves running, cooking, politics, wine/spirits, food, traveling, and sports. During football season, you can find her with her friends, leading the "Bear Down" for anyone who wants to join in, so feel free to say hi and sing along!

Arthur Flores is a local resident with over 15 years of business and finance experience. He is the founder of a Los Angeles-based distribution company specializing in healthier snacks and beverages. He has worked with various grocery stores, retailers, and beverage companies of all shapes and sizes. The opening of the Long Beach Co-op will be a great addition to the Long Beach community and he is honored to be a part of it.

Denise believes LBGCo-op can bring a unique presence that will enrich the Long Beach Community and beyond. Not only providing local produce, vendors, goods and services, but thru community outreach as well. In building a solid business and marketing strategy, the store will become a staple store opening the door to launch other coop stores. Denise has worked in Advertising Sales and Marketing for over 20 years, consulting businesses which include Supermarkets and National Brands. Previous board experience includes Soul Food for Your Baby and Lancaster Education Fund.

Damon Lawrence is a 32 year veteran of the Los Angeles City Fire Department and is an avid organic gardener. He has been the president of the LBGCo-op since the very beginning. He became interested in cooperatives when he stumbled into the Alberta Food Co-op while on a family trip to Portland, OR. Damon has been the driving force behind LBGCo-op and will continue to do as we all work to get the doors open to Long Beach and neighboring communities.

Chef Paul Buchanan is the co-founder of Primal Alchemy Catering and Events, a full-service catering firm specializing in Seasonal, Sustainable and Local cuisine. Primal Alchemy has enjoyed ‘Making Memories and Marking Milestones’ for corporate and social clients for 24 years.  As the first State Certified Green Business in Long Beach 6 years ago, Primal Alchemy was recently re-certified at the Innovator level this year.

Chef Paul is a fixture in the regenerative farm movement, supporting local, seasonal, and sustainable food systems.  Paul champions for putting scratch cooking back in schools, eliminating single use plastics and is an advocate for doing what is needed to caretake our planet.