St. Teresa Thrift Store unveils new location
Published 8:00 am Monday, July 10, 2023
- Customers shop at St. Teresa Thrift Store on Thursday, July 6, 2023, as the nonprofit organization celebrates its grand re-opening in the Fairview Plaza after its former home in the Houchens Industries-owned Plaza Shopping Center on the U.S. 31-W Bypass was ravaged by the December 2021 tornado. (Grace Ramey/grace.ramey@bgdailynews.com)
Since February, St. Teresa Thrift Store has been renovating, constructing and moving merchandise over to its new location at Fairview Shopping Center.
On Thursday, St. Teresa Ministries staff along with friends and family celebrated the grand opening of the new location.
St. Teresa Thrift Store is the outreach program of St. Teresa Ministries that offers a unique thrifting experience to its customers. All funds generated through the store are donated to area community members and organizations in need.
The thrift store sells gently used and new merchandise including housewares, decorations, athletic equipment, toys, mattresses and furniture as well as clothing and shoes for women, men and children.
“The main reason why our little thrift store has grown in the past five years is because every board member, every volunteer and every thrift store employee has a passion for our mission,” said Patty Poston, the store manager. “Simply put, our mission is helping the working poor right here in our Bowling Green community,”
St. Teresa Ministries has been able to donate $200,000 to local organizations and provide services through local food pantries such as the St. Joseph Food Pantry and the Holy Spirit Conference Food Pantry, and by partnering with Habitat for Humanity, the We Care Program, the Housing Authority, Megan’s Mobile Grocery, Sister Sheila’s Sewing and many more local organizations.
St. Teresa Ministries also provides care and support to individuals in the community. For example, it provided a local Ukrainan family with a couch and table along with a bed for their children after they arrived in Bowling Green with only the luggage on their backs.
“We’re able to do things to help and not just write the checks,” said Kelly Wiseman, the executive director of St. Teresa Ministries.
St. Teresa Thrift Store is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and is now located at 600 31-W By-Pass. The drive up donation center is located at the back of Fairview Shopping Center and open during store hours. For more information call 270-904-1832 or visit www.stteresaministries.org.
