Tucson thrift store gets back to business

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TUCSON (KVOA) – A nonprofit in Tucson is about to do something Tuesday morning it hasn’t done in more than a month.

Clothes, furniture, books, games, wedding dresses … whatever.

The Tucson Assistance League Thrift Store has it all. The thrift store had to close more than a month ago due to the pandemic. When COVID-19 started last year, the store was closed for five months.

The volunteers are in the process of opening the doors to the community as this popular place reopens after a forced hiatus from COVID-19.

As a flight attendant around the world, Monique Van Sickle is one of the shop’s volunteers. Sickle helps raise funds and then sells everything from tables and chairs to children’s shoes, books and board games.

“We look forward to welcoming our loyal customers again,” said Van Sickle. “We have a lot of loyal customers here in town.”

Meet Monique Van Sickle, a volunteer in the Tucson Chapter of the #AssistanceLeague. She and others are opening the thrift store this morning for the first time in weeks after a COVID break. The story comes in a few minutes. @KVOA pic.twitter.com/va1KLHMEEU

– Eric Fink (@EricMillerFink) March 30, 2021

Some of the customers are looking for a fresh start and these little-used items help furnish their new home or crowd an otherwise empty closet.

The Assistance League funds several programs in Tucson, including Operation Schoolbell, which gets about 4,000 children dressed for school.

In the back of the donation room is Holly McGuire, a retired snowbird with a big job.

“It’s going to be crazy here. We have very dedicated customers and we always have days when they know we have new inventory … we always have people in line, ”said McGuire.

Monique is lined up behind the counter … in the shop where she always feels valued, something you don’t always find at 30,000 feet.

“I get my voluntary spirit from my mother,” said Van Sickle. “And I just like to help, I like to help others and I like to work in my community.”

Thrift store sales account for more than 65 percent of funding for the Assistance League programs year-round.

You get some money through grants and thanks to generous donors in our community.

The shop opens on Tuesday at 10 a.m. They are open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For more information about the nonprofit, visit altucson.org/.

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