Organizer 'so excited' for opening of Lennox Island thrift store

Organizers behind The Shoppe, a new thrift store on Lennox Island, say items will be priced well-below the average thrift store offerings, in the hopes of making shopping more affordable for the 350-400 people who live there. 

"I'm so excited," said Misti Myers. "I want people to come into those doors and be like, 'I can't believe I got this for $5,' or 'I always needed this but I couldn't afford it.' It's going to mean a lot to a lot of the members here." 

Myers said after several years of running a Facebook group called Lennox Island Families Helping Families, she wanted to do more to support vulnerable people in her community. 

"In three or four years, we haven't had an urgent need not go met, which is kind of amazing," said Myers.

She said through her involvement in the group, she began to receive donated items from people in the community. Though the donations were greatly appreciated, the volume of items became unmanageable.  

"Those donations were really taking over our homes," said Myers. 

"I was putting stuff in my daughter's room and she started getting mad at me. So we really needed a space, because we had to turn down so many donations just because we didn't have the room for it."

Preparing to open

In recent weeks, Myers has been cleaning and organizing those donations — everything from housewares to toys to clothing and Christmas items — and collecting and receiving truckloads more, in preparation for the opening.

It's being set up in the former daycare, a building that is being offered rent-free — the group only has to pay for utilities. 

The idea came from Chief Darlene Bernard — who saw a similar model at Onion Lake Cree Nation in Saskatchewan — and was able to find funding for the project through donations, in addition to a federal grant.

Myers said that for anyone on a limited income on Lennox Island, especially those who don't own a vehicle, even simple purchases add up when you have to pay someone for a lift off-reserve.

Renovations on the building are underway to make room for a food bank, and organizers hope to eventually be able to offer coffee, tea and light meals in the building as well.  

"The closest food bank that we have to Lennox Island is Tyne Valley," said Myers. 

"It's open once a week, but then someone still needs to pay someone $10 to get across when they don't have a vehicle."

Myers said the shop will open for several days over Christmas — then open regularly in the new year. 

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