Questions and answers
-Can you send me any materials that you have about the Center- mission statement, bios,
newspaper articles? We won the Gold Cup for the Ingrid Concentrate at the California High
Times canna-cup in 2010, and Won Bronze in the hybrid category in 2011, with The PURE, by
Sovereign.
- Also some answers to the following questions that I could use as quotes, 1-3 sentence
answers—tell me what name I should attribute each quote if I use em…allison, gabe, pete, etc…
1. How did the Leonard Moore Cooperative Start? "after being frustrated with the
"gray areas" of our industry, we got excited when the CA Attorney General created guidelines
and wanted to follow them, protect ourselves and our community. We incorporated in Feb. 2009"
-Gabe
2. Who started it and who is the team there now? "The Co-op was conceived by myself
and my wife, Allie. Our staff consists of local members of our community and our friends. Each
of us have a desire to promote alternative health, organic foods, sustainable community and we
all have seen and felt the benefits of cannabis (both raw & dried). We KNOW that cannabis is
an amazing medicine and we aren't afraid to say so. Our manager is Erin and Pieter, Michelle,
Pete, Teddy and Shay are our bud-tenders and Pete is our devoted juicer. We couldn't ask for a
better team!" - Gabe
3. How did you choose to open in the cute little town of Mendocino? "The Mendocino
village is a sweet little vortex of alternative health providers such as acupuncturists, masseuses,
herbalists, therapists, organic veggie farmers and cannabis farmers. This village is our
community, we walk down the street and know everyone around us. Tourists always ask us
"how do you live here, what do you do?" And we always tell them about our economy here and
the pride of the alternative living that we, our community, all strive for. Mendocino is gaspingly
picturesque, the air is lighter here, the homes are still old early homesteads nudged up against
fierce waves and cliff-sides. Tourism and Cannabis, Canna-Tourism is our goal." - Allie
4. Have you been well received in the community? "There are always a hew people
who don't want to acknowledge that the cannabis industry drives our entire economy up here.
And there are always a few who still think that cannabis is a devil drug, but with our open door
policy (anyone can come in and learn about cannabis) we have opened the eyes of locals and
tourists. We have been received better than expected. We are an upstanding and respected
group and that has paid off" -Allie
5. What is your company culture/values? "Sustainable community, self regulation,
respect and owning responsibility as an industry, compassion and charity, friends and family....
and a little hippie-cowboy too" -Gabe
6. Do you feel you’ve made an impact? How? On the lives of individuals, yes! We
provide the best medicine at the lowest price. We provide a location for association and
education. Anyone who takes advantage of what we are offering benefits directly! We bring
hope to our community by demonstrating what a Co-op /dispensary can look like and feel like,
one of class, beauty and warmth. Something locals can be proud, a good example of what our
industry can aspire to. Indirectly, we bring in both locals and tourists to the village where they
will shop, eat and stay." -Erin
7. Can you describe the vibe at the Center?
"Our staff is nice, helpful and knowledgeable... and all quite good looking, although that's just a
coincidence! the vibe is modern yet home-like, cutting edge but not pretentious at all. It is a
clean, fresh and something new." -Allie
8. There is a very open, airy feel to the design, talk about that.
Lets just say people walk in, look around, and often say, "Uh, I think I'm in the wrong place!"
And we say, "No, you're in the right place, come on in!" The word Warm and Gallery have been
the most common description for our center. Right now we have Leonard Moore's artwork up
throughout the center, artwork which his friends and family held onto for 20 years since he
passed in 1992. We kept the floor plan open so as to make room for our lectures and events.
Our Bar was custom made by a local man, George Lawrence-he's an amazing woodworker!
Gabe designed the bar in a way that would show off the cannabis available without putting it
directly in your face when walking in. Our backyard is rustic but with the help of one ofour
employees, we plan on creating purmaculture design in the near future." -Allie
9. What else do you want people to know about the Leonard Moore Cooperative?
Looking forward we want to help brand our region and promote canna-tourism. If and when
things turn federally legal or the state regulates the industry, we hope to continue to have a place
in this industry and movement, where people will know that Mendocino = good cannabis. Gabe
a. When did you first do it? Why? Our doctor recommends ingesting the
cannabis raw, there is no psychotropic effect- head high (although some
people say they get one) and you get the full medical potential of the
plant. It tastes a little like wheatgrass, same color & texture. Our first
big juicing event was at the 2011 High Times Cannabis Cup in San
Francisco. Our entire crew helped prep the fruits and veggies, washing
and prepping the cannabis leaf and Pete rocked the juicing machine. We
instantly nominated him to be our juicing-man from them on out.
How do you feel about the juicing program?
I think we are all a little frustrated because we are still in the beginning stages and cannot offer it
every day, all the time. Our county has put heavy restrictions on our plant count, making it hard
to supply enough plant material for what is needed to juice. And there is still very little research
on the raw juice. There are so many questions unanswered. Such as, is it just as effective after
being frozen? is the leaf as potent as the flower? BUT IT WORKS! A woman, with a serious,
life threatening disorder, has moved out here from Texas just to juice for a few month. She saw
immediate, day-one, positive results that made us all get the chills when hearing her experience.
e. Where do you see juicing go from here?
We’d love to see juicing facilities at every co-op. We hope someday it will be in hospitals or at
Jamba Juice… but I’m getting WAY ahead of myself here. First, we just want people to hear
and know about raw cannabis juicing. The Medicine will speak for itself!
h. Do you get high when you juice? – Some people have said that they do
feel a psychotropic effect, however, usually that is not the case. I have never gotten ‘high’ from
ingesting it raw and my body is very sensitive to everything! I’m not a big smoker of cannabis, I
usually consume it raw or use it topically, if anyone is going to feel it, I’d think it would be me.
- Allie
Can any patient come to the Center and try juicing?(this should be your plug to invite people to
come visit you guys) Yes, anyone with a valid Doctor’s Recommendation and members up with
the Co-op may try the cannabis juice. Our demonstrations are on Sundays, usually around 1pm,
Its a big production with members and their take-home jars, others just there for a taste test.
Oranges and cinnamon are our usual chaser and we mix the raw canna juice with coconut or
carrots & ginger, whatever is in season. Presently, our tasting is free of charge to all members!
Mendocino has so much to offer: scenic beauty, tranquility and clean air, a quaint village, fresh
restaurants, appealing shops, pioneer redwood history, underground cannabis history … and now
raw cannabis juicing - free! You gotta come check it out for yourself!
j. I’m sure I’m missing some stuff…favorite experience? Anything else…
This probabaly seems like a lot. Reply with whatever you can. If I can have something by
tomorrow morning so I can write tomorrow I’d appreciate it!
Highest regards- AnnaRae