Walter Swanson, manager of the Daily Groceries Co-op, has a salt-and-pepper beard. Wrinkles gather around the corners of his mouth and eyes.

Bianca Biduic, a junior from Dalton, has short brown hair, freshly tanned summer skin and big brown eyes. At age 20, her eyes glisten with idealism and an eagerness to try new things.

In spite of stark physical differences, both pairs of eyes see the same thing in the Daily Groceries Co-op. They see a culture of local food that bridges the gaps of age and time.

“I think it’s never too soon or too late to choose a lifestyle that is beneficial to your physical, mental and spiritual well-being, and this is one small step for me,” Biduic said of her recent decision to volunteer at Daily. “Also, my grandparents are farmers, so I’ve always felt a strong relationship to the land.”

The Daily Groceries Co-op is a democratically-run business that everyone who reaps its benefits has a hand in. Biduic recently completed her first four volunteer hours required from new members. From now on, she will receive a 5 percent discount on the store’s locally grown organic goods in exchange for every hour she works.

“Then again, sometimes that is a benefit. Being a cooperative, we have a process [in] which all members may attend board meetings to suggest ideas, serve on a committee to help develop and ultimately implement those ideas which the members pass by vote,” Swanson said.

Nearly 20 years ago, the Daily Groceries Co-op started with three female friends much like Biduic. Each of them had a budding interest in the local agriculture movement and each was willing to jump head first into a job in which they had little or no experience.

In 1992, the original Daily Groceries, located in the Grit’s expanded dining room, would have closed were it not for a risk-taking employee, Angie Grass. Grass knew nothing about owning a business, nor did she have the funds to purchase it; but she had heard rumors of co-op businesses up North where a large group of people shouldered financial burdens together.

Joined by two friends, Grass decided to buy the dying store in hopes that others in the Athens community would join in on the project.

Nearly two decades later, the Daily Groceries Co-op has changed locations to a larger store on Prince Avenue, created a biannually-elected Board of Directors and has almost paid off its financial debt.

“Believe it or not, this past year is the first time Daily has run at a profit,” said Swanson. “Even so, we have a long way to go.”

But Daily is far more concerned with serving its customers than with making money. The customers, in turn, willingly volunteer out of a common love for food and community.

“I noticed everyone working there was genuinely attracted to it for a reason, not just because they were looking for a job,” Biduic said after her first day of work. “They were looking for a certain atmosphere in the work place.”

“I think when you’re working with people with a certain ideology it helps the business and makes it grow. It’s not just produce; it’s a healthy lifestyle,” she said.

Although Daily is flourishing like never before, current president Dan Everett still has goals and ambitions he wants to see through.

“Young people nowadays are waking up to the importance of making conscious decisions about the impact of spending your dollars,” he said. “We’d like Daily to be known as the go-to place for local, organic and fair-trade food.”