2026 Owner Election
We’re excited to introduce our outstanding candidates on this year’s ballot!
Cast your vote between October 17 – November 7
Board Resources
Meet Our Election Board Candidates
Brianna Menard – Incumbent
For more than a decade, Wheatsville has been my grocery store, my community, and a place where I can put my money where my values are. Serving on the Board of Directors these past few years has given me an even deeper appreciation for the people and principles that make our co-op possible. Wheatsville has served me for more than ten years, and I’m proud to serve our co-op community in return.
Professionally, I serve as Director of TEXPAC and Political Education at the Texas Medical Association, and I’ve spent more than a decade working in public policy, nonprofit leadership, and community advocacy. That experience has strengthened my belief in the power of people and the good that comes from building community.
I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve a second term and continue supporting Wheatsville’s future as a thriving, independent, community-owned business that makes Austin a better place to call home.
Wade Powell – Incumbent
Hi, I’m Wade Powell. I’m a wildland firefighter, restoration ecologist, and proud public employee. I have been a member of the cooperative since the early twenty-teens but first became familiar with it as a shopper for the House of Commons Co-op when I moved to Austin in 2007. I have been in love with the cooperative model since I first learned about it.
I want to help our members shape the cooperative economy in Central Texas for years to come working within Wheatsville and in the community beyond. I’d like to expand access to Wheatsville to more diverse shoppers and neighborhoods, expand ownership to more existing shoppers, and access to the board and volunteerism to more existing members. My first year on the board has taught me so much, and I hope you’ll consider reelecting me as we work through these critical years ahead for our co-op.
Community Action Nominees
We have 31 community non-profit organizations on the ballot. The ten non-profits receiving the most votes will be assigned a fundraising month in 2027.
- Plastic Reduction Project
Annual Budget: $18,220
PRP partners with brands, institutions, and small businesses to replace single-use plastic and food ware with reuse systems that work in the real world.
- Texas Veg Foundation
Annual Budget: $50,000
Provides free educational resources on the health, environmental, and environmental benefits of plant-based diets.
- Mindful Wellness Center of Austin
Annual Budget: $63,000
Affordable mindfulness counseling for Austin area residents.
- Maplewood Elementary Garden
Annual Budget: $87,264
Outdoor bilingual garden education for 400+ students.
- Red Salmon Arts
Annual Budget: $139,000
CCV creates a supportive community to address isolation and loneliness among older adults who wish to remain independent in their homes. The allocated funds will support programs and initiatives centered around social connections, safety, health and wellness, and aging gracefully.
- Sunday Lunchbox
Annual Budget: $194,000
The mission of Sunday Lunchbox is to empower families facing economic insecurity with access, tools, and agency on their journey to cultivate lasting, plant-rich nourishment for thriving children.
- Black History Bike Ride
Annual Budget: $210,000
Black History Bike Ride leads educational bike rides open to the public, bringing awareness of local Black histories to the forefront.
- Ecology Action of Texas
Annual Budget: $280,000
Restoration ecology and community empowerment.
- Anthropos Arts
Annual Budget: $325,000
Anthropos Arts connects low-income youth with professional musicians, cultivating confidence, integrity and life-skills through musical instruction and mentorship. - Fruitful Commons
Annual Budget: $325,484
Fruitful Commons supports neighborhood leaders and organizations to grow food, strengthen communities, and foster stewardship of the natural commons. - Building Promise USA
Annual Budget: $380,000
Peer-led nonprofit working to break the cycle of incarceration, unemployment, and homelessness for people impacted by the justice system and behavioral health challenges. - Adventurers Academy of Lifelong Learning
Annual Budget: $400,000
The Adventurers Academy offers daily opportunities for adults with intellectual disabilities to continue to learn, grow, and connect with their community through a variety of social, educational, recreational and vocational experiences. - Mariposa Family Learning Center
Annual Budget: $530,000
Mariposa Family Learning Center provides high-quality, nurturing, and comprehensive early childhood care and supportive family programming, regardless of a family’s ability to pay. - EarthShare Texas
Annual Budget: $647,688
ESTX is a statewide environmental federation that helps fund Austin- and Central Texas-based nonprofits working to protect natural resources, expand access to healthy food, improve parks and outdoor spaces, and strengthen community well-being.
- Partners for Education, Agriculture and Sustainability (PEAS)
Annual Budget: $901,465
PEAS connects Austin students to food and nature through hands-on garden and culinary education that builds confidence, life skills, and curiosity.
- Good Work Austin
Annual Budget: $1,200,000
Good Work Austin is the only organization in Central Texas dedicated to better jobs and fair treatment for food and beverage workers, through culinary workforce training, hunger relief, and workplace advocacy.
- Save our Springs Alliance
Annual Budget: $1,300,000
The Save Our Springs Alliance works to protect the Edwards Aquifer, its springs and contributing streams, and the natural and cultural heritage of the Hill Country region and its watersheds, with special emphasis on Barton Springs.
- Austin Creative Reuse
Annual Budget: $1,459,233
ACR has diverted more than 3.5 million pounds of creative materials from the landfill and put them back into the hands of the teachers, artists and makers in our community.
- Keep Austin Beautiful
Annual Budget: $1,744,389
Keep Austin Beautiful inspires and educates Austinites to volunteer together, beautify green spaces, clean waterways, and reduce waste every day. - Go Austin / Vamos Austin (GAVA)
Annual Budget: $2,006,100
GAVA organizes and mobilizes community power to reduce barriers to health while increasing institutional capacity to respond to the people most impacted by historic inequities. - Austin Smiles – The Austin Plastic Surgery Foundation
Annual Budget: $2,020,736
Austin Smiles The Austin Plastic Surgery Foundation is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide sustainable surgical and post-surgical care to children born with cleft lip and cleft palate both in Central Texas and Latin America.
- TreeFolks
Annual Budget: $2,756,701
TreeFolks fights climate change by planting & caring for trees. - The Rise School of Austin
Annual Budget: $4,095,503
Provides early education and therapy to children of all abilities.
- Ronald McDonald House Central Texas
Annual Budget: $5,065,378
Ronald McDonald House Central Texas provides comfort, connection, and support to families with a child receiving medical care through our Ronald McDonald Houses, Family Rooms, Heart Carts, and Family Support Services.
- Austin Humane Society
Annual Budget: $5,113,405
Austin Humane Society is Austin’s longest-standing no-kill, non-profit animal shelter, dedicated to providing comprehensive care and life-saving services for animals in need. - Friends of the Children – Austin
Annual Budget: $5,454,549
Long-term mentorship provided to children experiencing poverty. - Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Travis County
Annual Budget: $6,821,000
CASA of Travis County recruits, screens, trains and supervises community volunteers who advocate for children who have experienced abuse or neglect and have cases in the Travis County child welfare courts.
- Sustainable Food Center
Annual Budget: $10,557,971
SCF transforms the food system to nourish our health, land and livelihood.
- Hospice Austin
Annual Budget: $26,631,200
Compassionate end-of-life care and support.
- Peoples Community Clinic
Annual Budget: $38,915,370
Thousands of patients call People’s Community Clinic their medical home. The clinic is a unique and tested model for medical care, a true safety net for Central Texas’ uninsured and medically underserved
- Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas
Annual Budget: $48,923,261
Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas (PPGT) provides trusted, evidence-based sexual healthcare and education while advocating for reproductive justice, care without judgment, and access to healthcare for all. Funding will support the organization’s on-going efforts to provide quality and affordable healthcare service, science- based sexual education, and further strengthen partnerships in the greater Austin community. This will ensure that Austin’s four healthcare centers remain a trusted resource for the community.