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How Park Avenue Thrift Began
An Enid couple, thirty something, took a Sunday drive after church. It was May, 2007. The young woman asked her husband, a local attorney, “What do you think Enid is going to be like in ten years? Do you think it will grow? Will it stay the same or will it decline?”
After some discussion, they agreed Enid will thrive if its citizens continue to strive for and achieve a high Quality of Life. At a June, 2007, City Council Meeting, with an urgent need to replace a damaged bridge ($1,000,000 price tag), Enid city officials were considering how to make budget cuts to some of the non-profits that make the Enid community unique. While their sympathy to the causes of these non-profits ran high, their pocket-books were running low. The new Enid mayor challenged these non-profits to “step up to the plate.”
Around the same time, a couple of us a St. Matthew Episcopal Church parishioners were considering how to live out the Summary of the Law found in Matthew 22:37-40. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God .... and thy neighbor as thyself is heard by Episcopalians every time the Rite One Eucharist is celebrated. Hearing that week after week, opens up the heart to hearing God, so when they heard the challenge by the mayor, they put their heads together and came up with a venturesome idea: using a charitable thrift store to fund the Quality of Life nonprofits that make Enid grand.
We reasoned that by partnering with fellow parishioners, friends and patrons of these organizations, we could turn non-cash contributions of stuff into real cash, thus supporting these fine agencies. These agencies could then continue to focus on doing what they do best, making Enid grand, instead of having to incessantly focus on fund-raising.
Meetings were set with three of the affected non-profits facing budget cuts. Leonardo’s Discovery Warehouse / Adventure Quest, PEGASYS (our public access television station), and Main Street Enid jumped right on board and gave us the needed confidence to take the next step.
The perfect building was located at the south end of the downtown corridor. The landlord, already a strong community booster, was approached and immediately caught the vision of Park Avenue Thrift. Main Street Enid, assisted by Oklahoma Main Street Program Architect Ron Frantz, helped with a site assessment and premises makeover scheme.
Our Father's Business, Inc., doing business as Park Avenue Thrift, was chartered and our 501 (c)(3) non-profit tax exempt status was granted. got stuff? Every one does, and Park Avenue Thrift wants it! Large got stuff? drop stuff! signs hang above the sliding glass donation door in the alley on the south side of Park Avenue Thrift. Employees and volunteers process, price and attractively display the donated stuff for eager shoppers looking for that special bargain.
Park Avenue Thrift has a box-truck and we do pick-ups of larger items in the Enid area. We also recycle items such as clothing, shoes, purses, hats, belts, and toys that can’t be used otherwise, sending thousands of pounds of stuff to 3rd world markets on a monthly basis. A baler is used for this operation, and the bales are loaded in a semi-trailer with a forklift. All this equipment is owned by Park Avenue Thrift.
Organizations who qualify can request grant guidelines from Park Avenue Thrift, 507 S. Grand, Enid, OK 73701. You may download the Grant Guidelines here.
Park Avenue is “Puttin’ on the Thrift” in Enid, Oklahoma, and Having Fun Helping Enid, where the cash register receipts proudly proclaim “We Love Enid”.
After some discussion, they agreed Enid will thrive if its citizens continue to strive for and achieve a high Quality of Life. At a June, 2007, City Council Meeting, with an urgent need to replace a damaged bridge ($1,000,000 price tag), Enid city officials were considering how to make budget cuts to some of the non-profits that make the Enid community unique. While their sympathy to the causes of these non-profits ran high, their pocket-books were running low. The new Enid mayor challenged these non-profits to “step up to the plate.”
Around the same time, a couple of us a St. Matthew Episcopal Church parishioners were considering how to live out the Summary of the Law found in Matthew 22:37-40. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God .... and thy neighbor as thyself is heard by Episcopalians every time the Rite One Eucharist is celebrated. Hearing that week after week, opens up the heart to hearing God, so when they heard the challenge by the mayor, they put their heads together and came up with a venturesome idea: using a charitable thrift store to fund the Quality of Life nonprofits that make Enid grand.
We reasoned that by partnering with fellow parishioners, friends and patrons of these organizations, we could turn non-cash contributions of stuff into real cash, thus supporting these fine agencies. These agencies could then continue to focus on doing what they do best, making Enid grand, instead of having to incessantly focus on fund-raising.
Meetings were set with three of the affected non-profits facing budget cuts. Leonardo’s Discovery Warehouse / Adventure Quest, PEGASYS (our public access television station), and Main Street Enid jumped right on board and gave us the needed confidence to take the next step.
The perfect building was located at the south end of the downtown corridor. The landlord, already a strong community booster, was approached and immediately caught the vision of Park Avenue Thrift. Main Street Enid, assisted by Oklahoma Main Street Program Architect Ron Frantz, helped with a site assessment and premises makeover scheme.
Our Father's Business, Inc., doing business as Park Avenue Thrift, was chartered and our 501 (c)(3) non-profit tax exempt status was granted. got stuff? Every one does, and Park Avenue Thrift wants it! Large got stuff? drop stuff! signs hang above the sliding glass donation door in the alley on the south side of Park Avenue Thrift. Employees and volunteers process, price and attractively display the donated stuff for eager shoppers looking for that special bargain.
Park Avenue Thrift has a box-truck and we do pick-ups of larger items in the Enid area. We also recycle items such as clothing, shoes, purses, hats, belts, and toys that can’t be used otherwise, sending thousands of pounds of stuff to 3rd world markets on a monthly basis. A baler is used for this operation, and the bales are loaded in a semi-trailer with a forklift. All this equipment is owned by Park Avenue Thrift.
Organizations who qualify can request grant guidelines from Park Avenue Thrift, 507 S. Grand, Enid, OK 73701. You may download the Grant Guidelines here.
Park Avenue is “Puttin’ on the Thrift” in Enid, Oklahoma, and Having Fun Helping Enid, where the cash register receipts proudly proclaim “We Love Enid”.
