Two years after opening its doors, the Dorchester Food Co-op (DFC) is celebrating more than just an anniversary — it’s celebrating survival.

The community- and worker-owned grocery store, which was more than a decade in the making, faced a dire warning two months ago when the board of directors announced that the co-op could be forced to close without a surge in member support. In an August letter to member-owners, the board urged the community to shop local to help keep its doors open.

This month, buoyed by community support, the Dorchester Food Co-op is marking its second anniversary as both a neighborhood milestone and a reminder of the challenges small, mission-driven grocers face.

Dedicated to making healthy food accessible and building community wealth, the co-op offers affordable produce, supports food assistance programs such as SNAP and WIC and serves as a gathering place for cultural events, learning and local connection.

Anyone can become a member of the co-op, where they get a chance to vote, run for the board of directors and help to make decisions in the best interest of the community.

To celebrate their second anniversary — which was Oct. 14 to be exact — the co-op will host its Ujima Pumpkin Party on Thursday, Oct. 30. Community members can connect with their neighbors, celebrate community and paint a pumpkin.

We spoke to five individuals, who are strongly connected to the co-op, about how they feel about their experience shopping at the DFC, its importance to the community and how they see the co-op growing in the future.

DFC shopper and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) member Kemarah Sika thought back to the fundraising and volunteer work she did to help launch the co-op in 2023.

She is happy that the co-op has continued to survive in the community, especially with recent closures of other community stores.

“I know grocery store businesses are not easy. With the closing of the Daily Table recently, it can feel gloomy, so I’m thrilled to see that it is continuing and hopeful that we can begin to continue to get that message out: This is not just about where you shop [for] your groceries, but this is beyond in terms of what needs to happen in our communities at this moment,” she said.

Shopper and former DFC board member Heleneke Mulder said she is really excited about the celebration of the second anniversary, and she’s reflecting on all the time and effort that went into bringing the co-op to the community.

“The importance of having a community-owned store in the neighborhood, it’s the only community-owned grocery in Boston. …It’s a really important thing, especially when you think about in recent years, the real estate in Dorchester has gotten so high that it seems that all but major retailers with the pockets can really open up something new,” she said.

Mulder also talked about the importance of having the co-op in the community.

“We have a grocery store that’s responsive to the needs and wants of the community. That’s not something you would necessarily get with a big national chain.

The profits stay within the community. They’re not extracted out to some venture capitalist. ...They stay within the community. The wages stay within the community, the profits stay in the community,” Mulder said.

Former DFC board member and food grower Marcos Beleche agrees with Mulder, saying that it is important for community members to see a new model instead of the corporate model that is often displayed in many businesses.

“The cooperative model itself is really important, particularly in this age where living wages are rare, where there’s so much discrimination in the workplace, I think it’s important for people in the neighborhood to see and understand that there’s a different type of model than your corporate model…in this case, this model is the community, everybody owns a part of it to share,” Beleche said.

Current DFC board member Ralph Firmin said it’s important for the co-op to be in the community as it makes it convenient for community members to access healthy food options that are affordable.

He shared what he hopes for the future of the co-op.

“It’s something that I’m proud of…second year strong. It shows what’s possible for the future when a community comes together with intention and purpose. It’s not just about the milestone, it’s about the movement. So, I think in the future, it’s the progress where we’re continuing to build and provide this space for the community,” he said.

Board member Sarah Assefa said the co-op celebrating its second anniversary is very special, as it is the dream of many people in the community. She also said she sees the co-op serving the community in the future.

“We just want to add more value in our community and make food access even greater. We know that the need is even rising in these times when SNAP, EBT and all these things are kind of under threat. The federal government support is not there, but allowing people in our community to be hungry is not an option,” she said.

“In the future, I would like us to be a place of real mutual aid and solidarity economy, a place where people can connect. …I just see us getting better at all of these things and increasing our offerings,” Assefa said.