Thrift shop reopens Saturday
Just in time for upcoming holiday seasons — Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas — the little thrift shop that could is gearing up for a grand reopening this Saturday.
Housed in a clean, roomy, bright basement space next door to St. Mary’s Catholic Church on Shirley Street, the shop was shuttered in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s just as enticing now, with an extensive, delightfully eclectic inventory that is as eye-catching as ever. Maybe even more so.
Thrift shop manager Phil Knight and the rest of the all-volunteer staff were preparing for the big day when Knight met a Nashoba Valley Voice reporter there on a recent Saturday morning.
The shop’s history dates back a decade or so and suggests a can-do outlook that continues today. It started out as the white elephant sale section of St. Mary’s annual block party.
Held on the lawn behind the parish rectory, the sale was part of the annual festivities, Knight said, and he’d pitched in to help
a neighbor set up. “That was about 10 years ago,” he said and he’s been on board ever since.
Tracing its time-line from an all-outdoors, once a year event to a more permanent setup in a tent for about a year, he said both locales were beset by vandalism. Next, they moved the sale into the church basement, but when the stairs flooded during a rain storm, they started eyeing another move.
The wash-out occurred on a Friday night and the shop was back in business next day. “It was a beautiful Saturday and we had it all cleaned up,” Knight said. But they needed new digs. “Sister Joan checked out the school basement,” he said, referring to Ayer Kiddie Depot, an early childhood learning and day-care center next door.
The space was in rough shape. Parish members got the work done over the course of the summer. It was fixed, painted and ready for use in time for the church’s s outdoor festivities the following year.
The barbecue was held outside, as usual, with the white elephant sale indoors. “That was about 10 years ago,” Knight said, and it’s been that way ever since. But St. Mary’s Thrift Shop is now an entity in its own right, open every Saturday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., year round, with donations accepted during that time. All proceeds benefit the church.
The layout, with separate sections for each category — books, toys, home goods and small appliances, cookware, decorative nick knacks, costume jew
elry, clothes, religious items, yarn — is a breeze to navigate, with plenty of walk-around space.
Everything is shinyclean and attractively displayed. At bargain basement prices that can’t be beat, ranging from a few dollars or less. A few items came from the church, and a couple from the school upstairs, Knight said, including a rack of children’s books.
Seasonal specialties beckon. Tea sets, whistling tea kettles, dishes, figurines and much, much more.
The clothing section – at the rear — is smallish, tasteful. Sweaters, scarves, coats, dresses. Knight said selections reflect what people are likely to want. Men’s suit’s, for example, are not best-sellers these days, he said.
The rest of the store is busy by comparison, wellorganized, enticing to browse. Each section is
separate and items are accessible. Toys and household goods are in another room off the main space. Books have a corner. One table near the door holds to the “jumble sale” tradition, except it’s free stuff.
One could spend all day in here, literally. But the window of opportunity is tight: Saturday mornings only, starting Oct. 3, from 9 .a.m. to 3 p.m., with COVID-era rules..
Masks are a must for everybody, patrons and volunteer staff alike. “No masks, no entry,” Knight said. Only six customers in the store at a time, plus the five-member staff, and please, social distance — six feet — at all times.
The rules are not only state requirements, but also stipulated by the Archdiocese, Knight said.
Restrooms are temporarily closed to the public and only for store staff. Hand sanitizer and vinyl gloves will be available,
Knight said.
Acceptable donations include toys, clothes, small furniture and housewares. Clean, please. Cash transactions are limited to bills under $50. No $50 or $100 bills will be accepted, he said.
Anticipating the opening, Knight said he’d been cruising local stores for items people might be looking for, including toys, as well as items he’ll need on site, including tissues, toilet paper and signage.
Noted in the home section, a Keurig coffee maker in eye-popping aqua. Knight said it was his own contribution, brought from home. A visitor, recalling an earlier find, wished she could stay to shop. The past purchase, a classy leather wallet, perfect condition, $2 was too good to pass up and there are many more great buys.
Not to mimic an iconic movie-land promise, but I’ll be back!