By Robyn Rexin
Two Vavenby thrift stores—the Dr. Helmcken Memorial Hospital Auxiliary (DHMHA) store and the Fine Things store—have been working together to fill a semi trailer sitting on the grounds of the DHMHA store with usable, but not sellable clothing, shoes, and linens.
Volunteers sort through all of their donations to decide which can be sold and which recycled. In early autumn a full trailer was sent to the coast and an empty one left in its place.
In this way thousands of items are kept out of the landfill; the money received from Cann Am, the recycling company, is used by the thrift stores for the purchase of hospital needs and for community needs.