During Arts on the Fly in Horsefly many visitors learned what a great thrift store the community has, including the Tribune who visited it for the first time.
Since September 2020, seniors in Horsefly have operated the thrift store, open every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Chris Gruhs, treasurer of the Horsefly Seniors Activity and Wellness Society, said its inception was accidental.
The thrift store is located in the basement of the seniors activity centre and in the building there is also a storage unit that had been rented out.
After the rent was not paid for about 18 months, the society told the renter they were going to go in and take the contents.
The renter had left town so when Gruhs and the others opened up the storage unit they discovered a “hoarder’s haven.”
Most of the contents were dump-worthy, however, there was some great stuff so they had a sale in the basement of the building.
“From that everyone told us we should have a thrift store,” she said.
Everything in the store is donated and proceeds go back into the community. Fifty per cent goes to various groups. and the rest goes toward all the expenses of the building.
Gruhs and Pat Dowd mostly run the store, but if one of them is away there is always someone from upstairs that can help. Upstairs is where there are lunches, coffee and activities for seniors.
“We rented a bus and saw a play - Wait Until Dark- in Williams Lake,” Gruhs said of one of the seniors’ activities. “The neat thing is we didn’t have to drive (ourselves) home in the dark.”
In August they are going on a barge on Quesnel Lake to a cabin, owned by one of the seniors, for a barbecue.
Donations come into the thrift store word of mouth.
If people have moved away or passed away they end up with a whole household of stuff.
“We are never short of donations, let’s put it that way,” Gruhs said.
At the thrift store they plan to make a Christmas room during November and December.
“We are going to use the sewing room that we have downstairs for it,” Gruhs said.
Another thing people appreciate about the thrift store, she noted, are the “giveaway” prices.
Gruhs used to run an antiques and collectibles store for about 11 years in Horsefly, so she does keep her eye out for those types of items, puts them inside the glass case at the counter for the right buyer.
“I try to make sure everything is clean and not broken,” she added, noting they do not take clothes because there is already somebody selling nice used clothes in the community.
Between November 21, 2021 and October 31, 2022 the thrift store gave money to the Women’s Institute, Xmas Hamper Fund, Historical Society, Farm to School Program, Easter Egg Hunt, Quilt Club, Fall Fair, Community Club, Horsefly Volunteer Fire Department, Swimming program, Cemetery Committee and Xmas Hamper Food for a total of $1,975.
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monica.lamb-yorski@wltribune.com
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