Everything Co-op With Vernon Oakes

10/14/2021 - Karen Zimbelman, Sr. Director of Membership and Cooperative Relations at National Co+op Grocers discusses her career in the cooperative movement. Karen was recently inducted into the Cooperative Hall of Fame for her contribution to the co-op movement over her career of more than 40 years. Karen Zimbelman’s cooperative career began in the 1980s at the North American Students of Cooperation (NASCO) where she implemented board of director trainings. Over her 40-year career, she has organized hundreds of trainings benefiting thousands of cooperative board members. Since then, Karen has worked at North Coast Co-op, NCBA CLUSA, Rochdale Institute, and National Co+op Grocers (NCG). After three years as North Coast Co-op’s Director of Membership and HR, Karen began her next career phase as a cooperative consultant. During this time, she served as the newsletter editor for the Association of Co-op Educators, developed a tailored co-op orientation manual for food co-op staff, and served as the Executive D