Thrift Stores — Community Helping Hands

Thrift Stores.

Thrift stores were the first iteration of our ministry life at Community Helping Hands and they have now been in existence for over 20 years.

The stores are open to the public Wednesdays - Fridays from 3-7pm. For our referral guests, we make appointments Monday - Friday from 10am -3pm. To make a referral or book an appointment, call the office or schedule online.

We have also made select items available in our online shop.

This is our store that carries clothing, shoes, and accessories.
This store features our furniture and a library of used books.
This store features household items: think cookware, toys, baby items, decorations, and technology, and it is a picker’s playground when it comes to well-priced antiques.
Open seasonally from October - December to make Christmas decorations affordable and available to the community.

*All proceeds benefit our mission.

Our Helping Families in Need program provides free clothing, household items, and furniture from our stores to individuals and families that are eligible.

We are the only organization in the county that provides access to these items.

These items meet both a physical and emotional need in families [think: a kitchen table to do homework, a bed to sleep in at night (including pillows, comforters, bathroom towels), pots and pans to make a meal].

The vast majority of our clients have been formerly homeless, experienced eviction, are escaping domestic violence, or have recently relocated to the area.

We receive referrals from 40+ county agencies.

DSS, Salvation Army, MHA, Mental Hygiene, Catholic Charities, Evergreen Health, The Resource Center, Chautauqua Opportunities, UCAN City Mission, St. Susans, Love INC, Child Advocacy Program, and local healthcare facilities are the most common referrals.
We schedule 18-20 appointments per week.

Each interview includes an application and intake interview where needs, current government benefits, the reason they need help, and goals are discussed.
These appoints are exclusively for individuals and families in emergency needs.
We served 704 ppl between 2020 - 2021.

Our program is unique in its human approach. We are dignity and relationship centered and our processes, culture, and team composition reflect this.
For this reason, our clients often return as volunteers or as workforce development participants.
We gave away $42,000 in goods last year.

More than 50% of all donations given to CHH are used to help families in emergency need. Some of the most common requests we receive are for appliances, beds, pots and pans, and steel-toed boots. When we don’t have in item in stock that a client needs, we help with securing it.
Evaluation has led to our evolution.

We collect data via Charity Tracker, have a feedback loop with referral agencies, and our volunteers and WEP participants inform our decision-making.
In 2021, we purchased a new delivery truck, added an onsite translator, and begun offering e-commerce and online appointment scheduling.