If people are looking for a few little miracles, look no further than St. Vincent de Paul Society's new Thrift Store location at 1645 Third Ave, which holds its grand opening Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Take a step inside to see the brightly painted walls, the lovely floors, not to mention all the donated items available for sale or gifted to those in need.
"A professional floor layer and a professional painter each volunteered to do the whole job in their spare time," Mary Kranrod, board member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and liaison for the Thrift Store, said. "The man who did all the flooring just walked in off the street. Those are the little miracles that take place here."
And the volunteers, well, don't get Kranrod started on how appreciative she is for those who donate their time because that can bring on a bout overwhelming gratitude that gets her choked up with emotion.
"We wouldn't know what to do without all our wonderful volunteers," she smiled. "They are our life blood. We could not be the St. Vincent de Paul Society without our volunteers."
The transformation of the site from an aged restaurant to a brightly-lit store with wide aisles and room to move for shoppers gives Kranrod such a sense of connection as it took a community of Prince George volunteers to get all the heavy lifting done to bring the project together.
"The dismantling of the restaurant was such a huge project and now here's this beautiful store that is helping so many people," Kranrod said. "We are just thrilled."
The store has more room for the intake of donations from major appliances to clothing and shoes and household items happily accepted. The store is always short of men's clothing and the demand is always great for those in need in the community. St. Vincent's offers those in need free clothing, especially those in immediate need of seasonal clothing.
"Just the other day a family came in and we were able to offer them winter coats and boots," Kranrod said. "That's so satisfying to be able to offer the basic necessities of food and clothing to those who need it in the community."
The thrift store helps support the society's Drop In Centre, located at 1220 Second Ave., where three meals a day are served 365 days a year to those in need and as many as 200 people can come through the door in a day. Feeding all those people is done entirely by donation.
"We would like to welcome everybody to come to the grand opening of the thrift store to see this dream of ours that has come true," Kranrod said. "This is a time for St. Vincent de Paul Society to give thanks to Prince George that is such an awesome community for supporting their neighbours, to those who sponsored the project and to all the volunteers who gave their time - something that's so precious as everyone is so busy in this day and age."
Kranrod knows it's easy to get caught up in all the negativity in the world today, but to turn it around by focusing on the positive like helping people in the community is a great way to lighten up a person's outlook.
"Come and have a coffee and a treat at the thrift store Friday and Saturday," Kranrod said. "Our new building is a prime example of all the good that's out there. People donating their time, their talent and their hard-earned money - it's just been incredible and everyone should come and see it."
