As Green Again For New Beginnings celebrates its fourth anniversary, the importance of the store that sells gently-used merchandise is stronger than ever.
It was the continuous outpouring of support and donations from Orillia residents that resulted in the successful business venture for Green Haven Shelter for Women in July 2001.
"Voluminous donations over the years, that we couldn't always make great use of, always resulted in comments like, 'if only we had a store'," recalls executive director Liz Westcott.
"Having had conversations with the (Orillia) Community Development Corporation regarding other things prompted me to ask (general manager) Donna Hewitt if this was something they would consider helping us with."
The rest, as they say, is history.
In 2001, a professional from the CDC met with Westcott and helped her create a business plan called Geneisis, which led to a Trillium grant for volunteer support. To get the store up and running, two positions were paid for through Human Resources Development Canada job-creation grants.
On July 10, 2001, they set up shop in the Downtown Heritage Mall at 33 Mississaga St. E.
Currently, there is one employee with eight-to-10 volunteers who help sort, stock and provide customer service.
Donations are received directly from the community and sorted at the store before they are put on display.
There are great bargains to be had and Green Again has a long list of loyal customers, says Westcott. Between April 1, 2004 and March 31, 2005, Green Haven served 199 women and children in its residential program with an occupancy rate exceeding 90 per cent throughout the year.
The shelter also served 425 women in its community outreach and transition programs and responded to 999 crisis calls.
Recent announcements by the Ontario government highlight the need for increased fundraising efforts by shelters. Green Haven must raise $180,000 each year to continue to provide an adequate level of residential and community-based services to women and children.
With an annual revenue of approximately $9,000, Green Again provides an important contribution. And, it's not just a financial bonus.
Through gift certificates, the store also provides clothing and small household items, free of charge, to clients of the shelter who are starting out on their own.
While donations are always appreciated, they should be clean and in good condition, which is usually the case, says Westcott.
"The public has been phenomenal and the donations are amazing," she smiles, noting that three different schools donated a total of 212 bags of merchandise in the spring.
"We are creating a base of regular shoppers and continue to find out about folks we didn't know were there."
