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Staff
Cooperative Coffees' staff is shared between our two offices, our main office in Americus, and our Coop Sol office in Montreal. These are the folks that make the day to day operations of this organization possible. Below are the staff for the Montreal office.
Monika Firl | Ellen Meredith | Felipe Gurdian | Deborah Shea
Monika Firl serves as Cooperative
Coffee’s Communications and Producer Relations Manager, while directing
operations out of the Montreal "sister coop" office - Cooperative de
Solidarite du Cafe Equitable, CoopSol. Prior to coffee, she has worked
with a variety of locally based development projects, while living in
Central America and Mexico from 1991 to 2000. Her experiences range from
founding and directing a center in San Salvador for the exchange of
information on alternative technology, to coordinating a regional Campesino a Campesino
program promoting horizontal learning about sustainable production
practices and market alternatives with farmer groups in Central America,
to direct participation in technical training and marketing development
with coffee producers’ cooperatives in Chiapas— including Maya Vinic
from whom Cooperative Coffees maintains a relationship. Monika holds a
Master's Degree in Journalism as well as a BA in International Relations
and German. She got her start in business, growing up in the backroom
of her parents' independent, retail store.
In her spare time, Monika can be found on her bike, in the water, renovating some odd piece of furniture/home project.... or just goofing around with her 12-year-old daughter.
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An innocent question "Is it possible that coffee would taste like green peas?" sent Ellen Meredith down an entirely new career track in the fall of 2010. Having retired from the advertising world and 15 years as a self-employed caterer, Ellen has followed two years of intensive on-the-job training as CoopCoffees lab assistant. Currently armed with finely honed sample roasting skills, successful completion of SCAA Q-grader and cupping courses, and an unusually gifted, natural palate - Ellen has now taken on the role as CC lead cupper. Ellen is also responsible for planning and assisting with events such as our AGM Green Day, Roaster Workshops and internal exchanges. When not hunkered over the cupping tables - you might find Ellen whacking balls on the tennis courts or volunteer horseback riding to help handicapped children learn motor skills |
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Born and raised in Costa Rica, Felipe Gurdián Piza developed a love of coffee as a kid and has been a stickler for it since. He came to Montreal to get his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and History at McGill University, and has emigrated since. Starting off as a humble intern, Felipe rose through the ranks, and soon enough "graduated" to the Green Desk position in November 2011 with Florent Gout's departure to France. At the green desk, Felipe is in charge of purchases from Coop Coffees' partners and monitors the coffee's ebb and flow, managing it in relation to the co-op's needs through our commitment system. In his spare time Felipe enjoys punk-rock, books, videogames and his bike, weather permitting. |
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Deborah Shea joined CoopCoffees in April 2012. Prior to her immersion in coffee, she worked more than 20 years in the Canadian book industry. First in retail, then as a partner/owner of Hornblower Books, she was a key player in this national book publishers' representation group, where she served as CFO. Deborah now serves as the Montreal office accountant, while supporting general office administration and CoopCoffees communications and outreach work. Deborah is excited to be a part of the organic fair trade world, and to be drinking great coffee! She enjoys yoga, books and hanging out with her family. |
See the staff at the CoopCoffees office in Americus, Georgia.
