In the bright morning light after a fall rain. I’m walking into the Fairfax Good Earth to interview store co-owner, Al Baylacq.
Greeting me at the door are the aromas of fresh-baked bread and coffee sprinkled with scents of fresh produce, like you find at the farmers’ market.
On their journey to bring our community the finest local organic foods, co-owners Mark Squire and Al Baylacq have blazed a path to become industry-setting leaders, including founding roles in the Non-GMO Project and California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF). But today I am here to talk to Al about their local leadership.
Good Earth is one of West Marin Senior Service’s (WMSS) top business sponsors. Additionally, Good Earth provides weekly fresh produce to WMSS at cost that is then distributed to home-bound seniors throughout West Marin through the WMSS Home-Delivered Meals program.
Al walks into the store and immediately adjusts the shopping hand baskets by the door. Al is sporting West Marin casual, with sunglasses tucked on his peppery hair and a ready, youthful smile. He mentions that he has given someone a ride and they are waiting in the car. We step outside to some sturdy wood tables and settle down for a short interview:
Q: “Al, thank you for this opportunity. Your store is a vital hub in Marin, known for its focus on organic, local products. How does this commitment to high-quality, local sourcing reflect your broader values of community support?”
A: Well, I, I really do believe that a lot of us want to eat local food, healthy food. I am thankful to the nth degree to be a part of something like Good Earth here and providing local, organic foods. The value from a community standpoint was creating an opportunity for the community to thrive and come together, be in the same space, bumping into each other frequently. We can add to our culture with a community that has those places of coming together.
And Good Earth for me, very early on, represented that opportunity to really provide for the community in a whole way. And there’s a lot of give and take, right? It’s not just Good Earth giving, it’s Good Earth receiving.
You know, understanding where we’re at, relative to where the food has grown and trying to play a role in our own community with our own farmers and ranchers, and that felt right early on for me, too.
Al Baylacq, Co-owner of Good Earth Natural Foods
Q: “As a top sponsor of West Marin Senior Services, your support helps fund essential services like meal and fresh produce delivery. What is it about the independence and well-being of West Marin’s older adults that particularly resonates with you and your business?”
A: Anybody that is aging in West Marin likely has supported the store.
So, there’s a little give-back here, too, or a continued effort to help support those who have supported us for a long, long time.
There is an independence in the makeup of a lot of West Marin. There’s a sense that we could become alone out there in time. That’s real. And so, maybe there’s a little more durability in our seniors in West Marin compared to in town here, right? But you still need support. You still need human interaction, like I was mentioning before, just somebody pulling up to your place. You know, you might see just a few people a day, maybe a caretaker, but you need that interaction, you know? I know as I age, and continue to walk my dogs in my neighborhood, I’m going to, at some point, rely on the little interactions that I have in my neighborhood when I’m not out and about as much as I am now.
You know, the need for interactions are pretty critical for people. We get older. I’m getting older. I feel like my world is getting a little bit smaller. One of the things that comes to mind when I when I say that is, like, what’s his name, songwriter, John Prine? “I see you in there,” you know? There’s a line in one of his songs. I see you in there. It’s like: elder, I know you’re in there. We need to feel that we are seen, right?
And so, that’s it. An important little part of this simple little service of some produce at cost every week, but I’m going to keep it going. I don’t have that many daily duties around here. A lot of management, check-in and stuff, and vision stuff, but daily duties…
This is one I’m keeping to myself. I get to check in with the produce supplier every week which keeps me attached to the seasonality of our foods. I used to come from produce originally, so it’s really near and dear to me watching the flow of foods come in and out of this place. I can literally feel the seasonality of California changing as the produce lists change for us. And so, I hold on to that little part of this, you know.
Q: “Your commitment inspires others. For the businesses and residents who look to your store as a successful community leader, what is your personal message about the importance of investing in organizations like WMSS?”
A: Of investing in organizations. Not only West Marin Senior Services, but also San Geronimo Community Center, that’s probably where we’ve given our most.
There’s just simply a divide; there’s the haves and then there’s the folks that don’t have as much. I think the benefits of community organizations and non-profits like we’re talking about is so instrumental to the health of our community. They pay attention to those who need in a variety of ways, right?
I mean, the whole spectrum of needs for humans. To have a couple of organizations like we have, you know, where I feel really, really thankful for the Community Center in San Geronimo and the services out in West Marin. We’re all ending up in the ground one day, but we would get there quicker without these kinds of support systems. And so, yeah, it’s a drive and my focus is trying to help the stores to focus on who we support at a non-profit level and what parts of society that we look to support.
“I think the benefits of community organizations and non-profits like we’re talking about is so instrumental to the health of our community. They pay attention to those who need in a variety of ways, right?”
We’re obviously very active in continuing to support organic food, and the growth of organic food everywhere in the country and in the planet. That’s a big push, you know. My partner, Mark Squire, is leading that charge for retailers these days, and we got to continue to provide an opportunity for organic food to flourish.
When it comes to our local communities? We are coming up on 60 years of existence. And I know our seniors, our elders in West Marin, like I said a minute ago, they’ve been supporting the store in different ways for a long, long time, so it’s time to give back.
Always give back, and the benefit is, we just have a better culture locally amongst us when we’re taking care of everybody, not just some.