After a month of waiting, the Auxiliary Thrift Shop has reopened in its new location.
The Thrift Shop has moved into the Views at St. Joseph’s and celebrated with a grand opening ceremony on Nov. 3.
“Last March when we heard about this possible move to St. Joseph’s, it did seem to be a dream,” said co-convener Ruth Miller. “We already had a great little thrift shop at the Cottage … but the building was starting to need a lot of extra care and repair, and our volunteers for some reason felt that heat in the winter time was a good thing. So this was a wonderful opportunity for us.”
With the help of over 60 volunteers, they painted, moved shelves, moved bookcases boxes, tables, arranged the goods and then rearranged them for opening day.
Formerly a physiotherapy area, the bigger space allows room for the sale of speciality and collectible items, such as Christmas decorations – something that was not always possible at the old location.
“The saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child, but we know it takes the entire Comox Valley to move an Auxiliary Thrift Shop,” laughs Miller.
The shop is 100 per cent volunteer run and all the money raised goes to the Auxiliary for Comox Valley Healthcare. The money has recently been used to purchase large sun umbrellas for the residents to enjoy their time on the deck, it supports the art and music therapy program in the Views and it has gone towards refurbishing the new third floor of the Mountain View. They will also be purchasing a duet bicycle for volunteers to take residents out on a bike ride.
In 2003, the Thrift Shop brought in $79,000 which grew exponentially to a revenue of $187,000 in 2017. So far in 2018, the Thrift Shop has brought in over $137,000 and Miller is optimistic that total will continue to rise.
