thrift Archives

Meet One of Our Younger Volunteers at TRU Thrift

September 19, 2023 by TRU Community Care

Meet Jady! Just graduated from Fairview High School last spring, she’s got her whole life ahead of her. Jady is entering the University of Washington to study Environmental Science. Jady is also one of our volunteers at TRU Thrift.

Covid wasn’t an easy time for most, and many everyday activities were suddenly extinct, including retail shopping. Many people were left with not much to do and in search of new hobbies to keep busy. For Jady, that hobby became volunteering at her local thrift shop. Jady and her mother enjoyed thrifting and were frequent shoppers at TRU Thrift. One day they saw a sign advertising ‘help wanted’ and decided to give their spare time to a good cause.

“Starting as a volunteer during Covid was hard and kind of weird,” Jady claims, but she found it to be rewarding and worthwhile. Through the three years that Jady volunteered with TRU Thrift, she found friendships, helpful and kind people, and some cool thrift shop discoveries.

If you visited TRU Thrift in the past few years, you would likely find Jady up front and center on a cash register – she is a people person and loves interacting with customers. If not up front, she’s in the back sorting clothes and chatting up the other volunteers in the clothing department.

Very few of our volunteers are in the younger age group, and even fewer are school-aged, which makes Jady just that much more special. When asked about what she would like to share specifically with others her age about volunteering, she highlighted a few positives, “It’s a way to have great learning experiences,” Jady says, “and colleges and employers love it.” Jady says it is also a significant way to feel involved with your community while making a difference.

Over the past three years here at TRU Thrift, Jady contributed close to 200 volunteer hours! One key life lesson she took away from her volunteer time is the value of having patience and understanding for others. She also learned how to carry extra responsibility, as well as the importance of volunteering and serving others.

Now that Jady is off to college, she won’t be around the store as much, but her lasting impact will resonate for years to come. Jady will be coming home next summer, so you might get a chance to stop in and say hi to her next June!

Submitted by Kelsey B., Thrift Shop Intern

TRU Thrift Shop Moment Brings TRU’s Mission Full Circle

October 10, 2019 by Elizabeth Neufeld

With the large range of services offered by TRU, our programs often affect one another and are integral components in cultivating the community of TRU Community Care. All of our services are created to support families and individuals in our community who are coping with illness and loss. Even our TRU Thrift Shop began with the hopes of providing an outlet for people to give and receive one-of-a-kind items that someone once held dear.

It is not every day that TRU Thrift Shop stories come full-circle back to the mission of TRU Community Care, but recently, a customer saw a beautiful, affordable dining room table that she knew her friend would love. She quickly messaged her friend, Anne, and had her come to the shop to check it out. With no idea that TRU Thrift Shop existed, she came in to see the table, immediately fell in love, and bought it on the spot!

At that moment, Anne looked up, saw the TRU Thrift Shop logo, and realized that it was a part of TRU Community Care. She could not believe it! Anne’s father, Gary, received TRU Hospice Care for 6 months, and that day was the one year anniversary of her father’s passing. Her whole family had benefited from the services TRU Community Care provided. When her father passed, Anne participated in an 8-week grief support group through TRU Grief Services.

In Anne’s words, “it was such a meaningful moment when I found that table on the anniversary of my father’s passing. I felt so close to my dad and his memory on that day.” These are the heartfelt moments we are honored to take part in through life’s ups and downs. It was truly a one-of-a-kind moment that connected TRU Thrift Shop with TRU Hospice and TRU Grief Support services. And like all TRU Thrift Shop sales, Anne’s purchase will help support other families in need of TRU’s care.

To learn more about TRU Community Care’s services, please visit https://www.trucare.org/our-services/.

To learn more about TRU Thrift Shop, please visit https://www.trucare.org/truthriftshop/.

A Trip Down Memory Lane at TRU Thrift Shop

August 30, 2019 by Elizabeth Neufeld

Objects relate to memory in their ability to represent a time, place, and emotion. Encountering a familiar object of a distinct time in an individual’s life can be a visceral and monumental experience. TRU Community Care’s thrift shop, TRU Thrift Shop, is continuously providing these experiences for their customers and community.

Items come in daily from various decades and genres of life when families feel it is time to let go of their objects. Donating to TRU Thrift Shop provides a trusted place to let go of items in the appropriate junctures of life. TRU Thrift Shop renders an added assurance to individuals and families knowing they will be providing another individual or family with a treasured object, giving new purpose to old things.

Stephany Precourt, the Senior Development Associate at TRU Community Care, recently purchased a 1966 Singer sewing machine at TRU Thrift Shop. The exact same model she learned how to sew on as a young girl.

She dropped into TRU Thrift Shop with a friend on a whim one Saturday afternoon during a 50% off day. Stephany was on her way out the door when she caught a glimpse of her friend playing around with a sewing machine cabinet. She almost couldn’t believe her eyes. It was the same exact sewing machine that she had learned to sew on and was in pristine condition. All the memories and excitement of learning to sew as a young girl came flooding back.

Not only was the sewing machine in perfect condition, but it was also 50% off and included the original operating manual. It was one of those days when you feel like that specific moment in life was meant for you to encounter. Stephany was taken back in memory to her first experience sewing at 8 years old. She sewed pajamas. What is the first thing she will sew again on her latest 1966 Singer sewing machine? Curtains. From pajamas to curtains, seemingly simple items can provide immeasurable value at TRU Thrift Shop, a “one-of-a-find” kind of place.

To visit or learn more about TRU Thrift Shop, please visit https://www.trucare.org/truthriftshop/.

To read more by TRU Community Care, please visit https://www.trucare.org/blog.

Thrift with a Mission

June 6, 2019 by Elizabeth Neufeld

Infectious joy. Those are the two words that people frequently use to describe the atmosphere at TRU Thrift and the volunteers who work there. And it has the ability to impact anyone who steps foot into the store.

Mary Scripter has been volunteering with TRU Thrift for over three years. She helps with everything from organizing the literacy section to working the register. She even helped start the TRU Thrift Online Amazon Bookstore. She loves volunteering with TRU Thrift because of their mission — and the first look at all of the items coming in the door doesn’t hurt either.

Originally from South Dakota, Mary went to college in Wyoming and has lived in Colorado since 1971. She has been volunteering with hospices across Colorado since ‘76. She started her volunteering in Colorado Springs, until she found TRU Community Care.

Mary began working with hospice communities because of her experience through her sister’s death.

“When you’ve been helped by a hospice, you want to give back.” Mary tells us. “TRU Community Care has such a wonderful community, who donate furniture and goods to TRU Thrift.”

She understands that when people go through the death of a loved one, they want to give back and support others who are going through a similar experience. Mary’s favorite section is in the book stacks. There are days that she organizes 100’s of donated books.

Mary loves to organize and research the books for their value. If at any time you find yourself at TRU Thrift, check out their amazing book section. You may even find Mary there to help you support your efforts in finding the perfect summer read or even a treasure.

In the words of TRU Thrift’s Store Manager, Lynn McCullough, “Shopping at the TRU Hospice Thrift Shop can be an exciting and rewarding experience. Who doesn’t love the hunt for a bargain?”. Merchandise includes high-end furniture at reasonable prices, gently worn clothing from designer to basics, jewelry, collectibles, art, books, sporting equipment, housewares, and more.

About TRU