By Jaimie Schmitz
[email protected] Tilden will have a new downtown business soon — a business where no one gets paid. Some residents have been working hard to open a community run thrift shop. Theta Dame is a local pastor and started this idea. “Through visiting with people, I really believed this town needed a thrift store,” Dame explained. Dame then found the perfect building for the store. But knowing nothing about business, she reached out to Susan Fields, a member of Dame’s church. “I called her up and said, ‘So how do we do this’? And she kind of looked like, ‘What are you talking about?’ ” Dame remembered. “And I said, ‘The store. It’s for rent.’ And then she got excited.” The Tilden community has held a few meetings to discuss what is happening, what will happen, and what needs to happen. Slowly but surely, the New 2 U Community Thrift Store is starting to come together. “People just can’t wait for it to happen,” Fields said. “They just keep saying ‘Are you open yet? Are you open yet?’” Although board members are unsure how exactly this will come together, they trust that it will come together in the end. “I have no idea how this is going to work. I am not worried about it,” Dame said confidently. Dame’s faith in the project is reminiscent of Linda Kerkman’s when she began the process of opening the Bargain Box in Elgin. “You know it’s just wonderful to be able to do that and to know that this is a possibility in any little town,” Kerkman said. The Bargain Box opened in August of 2014. The store made thousands of dollars during the opening weekend alone, and the success has continued since then. “Since that time we have continued to be one of the hot spots in Elgin,” Kerkman said laughing. “We are right across from the grocery store and next to the bank, what more could you ask for.” Kerkman credits the success to the team of volunteers who help keep the store running smoothly. “In this establishment no one is paid,” Kerkman said. “All of the money goes back out to the charitable, good things.” Kerman said that the Bargain box is a win-win situation for the community. People have a place to bring their unwanted items, there is shopping at reasonable prices, and money goes back into the community and to those who need it. “You know they are putting funds here and there and really hope it works,” Kerkman said. “I just cant wait to talk to them in six months . . . I mean it just happens, and it just grows.” |
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