Thrift store needs help

HIALEAH � If you have been holding off on cleaning out your closets, you might want to think again. But before you call your local Goodwill or the Salvation Army, consider the St. Vincent de Paul Society, a worldwide organization of Catholic laypersons dedicated to helping those in need. 

Members of the society need help to save their Hialeah thrift store, which is on the verge of closing.

�We can�t help people if bills aren�t paid,� said Frank Cover, Hialeah branch store president and former president of the society�s Northwest District Council. �If we do not help the poor, then who else is going to?�

The Hialeah store is the only one in Miami-Dade County � the society has two in Broward � and is centrally located along the south border of Hialeah at 15 S.E. First Avenue. Its large navy blue and white canopy is a landmark for commuters who travel along Okeechobee Road and is easily spotted from shops and restaurants just across the river in Miami Springs.

By selling previously owned items such as clothing, shoes, house wares and furniture, the thrift shop is able to assist those who find themselves in need. But right now the Hialeah branch is operating at a deficit. Unless business picks up, the store will be unable to meet the growing litany of operating expenses and be forced to shut down.

Aside from the monthly expenses of rent, utilities, licenses, taxes, insurance and fuel, the store also is in dire need of a UPS-style cargo van. According to Cover, the van they have used for 20 years has finally broken down beyond repair. He emphasized that the van is important because the store uses it to pick up large donations such as sofas, beds, and mirrors.

While some of the store�s items are donated to select individuals in need, there are also hidden treasures for anyone hunting for a bargain. Loyal customers, such as Miami Springs resident Linda Collavo, browse the Hialeah shop on a regular basis.

�You never know what you�re going to find,� Collavo said. �Recently, there was a nice piece of furniture with a neat place for food storage but we had no place for it at the time so we had to let it go.�

Others customers have purchased lamps, sofas and dining room sets and even set up kitchens for a fraction of what they would pay at a retail store. Many customers have furnished first homes and spare rooms with unique pieces that have been donated.

�You would be surprised what you might find when you�re dropping something off,� said Rosemarie Mangiaracina, a parishioner at nearby Blessed Trinity in Miami Springs. �I love white china and one day I stumbled upon a set of 10 white cups and saucers. I was amazed that they were so inexpensive that I actually offered more money for them.�

During the store�s first 18 years of operation, the friendly face of Marie Willkomm greeted customers. Health issues forced Willkomm to enter a nursing home, where she died in July 2009 at age 91.

�When Marie died the store also died; that is, until Pilar Rodriguez came in about two years ago,� Cover said.

The Hialeah store is now managed by Rodriguez, who volunteers her time alongside fellow Vincentians Fred Flores of Our Lady of the Lakes Parish in Miami Lakes and Juan Serrano of St. John the Apostle in Hialeah.

�They do what they can to keep the store moving,� said Cover. �It is because of their love for the poor that the store is still alive.�

Anyone who needs assistance, regardless of their religious affiliation, can go to their local Catholic church, where a member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society will meet with them and verify their needs. With the proper forms in hand, they can then go to the thrift store and pick up the items they need.

�We prefer to have documentation from the authority of the Church but will not turn anyone away,� Cover said.

Among the store�s regular clients are patients from a nursing home who are in need of clothes or people who have connected with the society through the Switchboard of Miami.

�It is our mission to assist those in need,� Cover said. �When someone comes in and needs a wheelchair and they cannot afford to buy it, we will give it away.�


But the thrift store cannot afford to give away more than it is bringing in, which is why the public is encouraged to either shop at the store or make a financial gift.

It is also important that the store be stocked with an adequate inventory of desirable or �gently used� items. The old adage, �one man�s trash is another man�s treasure,� is not always true. Patrons are encouraged to use discretion when donating their belongings.

According to Flores, the store�s newest clients are educated unemployed people. �You feel bad for them. They are living under the bridges. When they come in we see that they get clothes, shoes and whatever they need.�

�I received a phone call from Memorial Hospital yesterday,� recalled Rodriguez, who said she receives phone calls from people in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties on a regular basis. �This person was at the hospital for two weeks and they had no shoes, no clothes and no bed. There are a lot of people in need at this time.�

Flores admits that some people take advantage. �It�s part of the business. But I firmly believe that you cannot outdo the Lord in generosity. The more you give the more you receive.�