Willy Street Co-op’s hippie reputation goes beyond granola and organic fruit — they’re also giving grants to local projects they think will help the community.

The local co-op announced the winners of a community building grant program in June, opening doors for the recipients to expand and improve local projects.

Willy Street Co-op has given out the Community Reinvestment Fund Grant annually since 1992. The Reinvestment Grant is founded on the seven cooperative principles, one of which is concern for community, Brendon Smith, spokesperson for Willy Street Co-op, said.

“We work very hard to support community events and organizations,” Smith said. “We recognized that there were some larger donations, so we started a process where local nonprofits can apply for grants. It’s been working out well ever since.”

When co-op members decide to end their membership, they are given the option to donate their membership fee instead of receiving a reimbursement. These donations are used to fund the grant, Smith said.

This year, 30 local organizations applied for the grant, according to the Willy Street Co-op website. Nine were chosen to receive various amounts of funding.

The selected organizations varied in purpose from Let’s Eat Out!, a coalition of food carts that seeks to decrease food insecurity throughout the city, to the Backyard Mosaic Women’s Project, an arts-focused support group designed for women who are or have been incarcerated.

Let’s Eat Out! initiative serves up solution to city food scarcity

The Backyard Mosaic Women’s Project was awarded the largest grant this year, receiving more than $3,500. The organization was founded in 2004 to create a safe place for women to connect and cultivate a passion for arts and gardening, Julia Weaver, co-facilitator for the project, said.

“We are a consistent safe place for people who are trying to do something different with their lives,” Weaver said. “And we create beautiful things.”

In 2010, the project became part of the Dane County Jail’s volunteer program, allowing women to decrease their sentence by participating in the project, according to their website.

Participants in the group have a wide variety of projects to work on, Weaver said. The organization maintains a garden, creates monthly meals from the garden’s produce, creates art to put on show at local venues and is planning its first outdoor installation piece. The project is also currently working on their first commission piece — a sign for local coffee shop EVP Coffee in exchange for coffee for the members, Weaver said.

When giving donations, Willy Street Co-op looks for organizations that provide hands-on projects that offer opportunities to increase social development, strong partnerships and the number of people benefited, according to the Willy Street Co-op website.

The Backyard Mosaic Women’s Project has not yet used the grant, but their plan for the money embodies the goals set forth by the Willy Street Co-op.

The project is planning to create an extensive set of raised bed gardens, including a wheelchair accessible garden, using the funds. The organization plans to work with the Learning Place, the Sunday school at St. John’s Lutheran Church, to maintain these gardens once they are built.

“We’re very grateful that we have the grant,” Weaver said. “It’s going to enable us to do some really wonderful things for the church, and also give us a chance to beautify the neighborhood. It really feels like an affirmation of our presence in the community.”