No storage wars for altruistic teen buyer
Shane Jones was looking to earn a little extra cash earlier this year when he stumbled upon YouTube videos explaining how to make money by buying the contents of repossessed storage units.
‘‘It seemed like something fun to do. I had some money I’d saved from working in a used bookstore,’’ said Shane, 16, who lives in Wakefield, Rhode Island, and often goes to yard sales in search of bottles and coins to collect, as well as hidden items of value to sell.
He found an auction in nearby Providence in August, and put in a bid of US$100 (NZ$144) on the contents of a storage unit. He was surprised when he won – but realised right away that he shouldn’t keep the items.
As he sorted through the household goods and personal mementoes, he remembers feeling sad – especially when he found documents belonging to the original owner.
‘‘This guy was in prison, and his storage unit was auctioned off because he couldn’t afford to pay for it. This was probably everything he had left.’’
Shane’s parents, Patrick Jones and Sarah Markey, said they were more than happy to help him track down the man’s mother at a retirement home in Providence, then went with him to drop off the belongings.
Shane decided to enter other auctions with the hope of giving back the units’ contents.
A few months later, in October, he bid on a second storage unit. His winning bid was US$50. This time, he found an address book in one of the boxes.
‘‘The couple who rented the locker had passed away, but there was a phone number for their brother-inlaw, and he was happy to come out and get everything,’’ he said. ‘‘He said there were a lot of family heirlooms that could have been lost.’’
Then, in January, Shane won his third bid, also for US$50. He found the renter’s name on some items in the unit, and tracked her down in Connecticut.
He and his parents learned that the woman had lost her job, which was why she had fallen behind on renting the unit. She had also lost a child to sudden infant death syndrome three years earlier. ‘‘All of her baby items and all of her childhood photos were in the storage locker.’’
Shane didn’t expect that anyone would find out about his new pastime, but then word got out at South Kingstown High School, which he attends. ‘‘We’re delighted to see one of our students doing such a wonderful thing,’’ said principal Chip McGair.