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Christ
Episcopal Church
107 South Washington Street, Rockville, MD 20850
Phone (301) 762-2191 Fax (301)
762-0928
Christchurch@cecrockville.org
Bargain Box History
What is The Bargain
Box?
We’re a thrift shop, selling clothing for men, women and children,
purses, shoes, hats, books, dishes, cookware, baskets, knick-knacks, curtains,
tablecloths, lamps, pictures, sports gear, and toys. You name it…we sell it…with
the exception of large pieces of furniture, school textbooks, and computer
equipment.
Mission Statement:
The Bargain Box, a thrift store, is an outreach ministry of Christ
Episcopal Church and embodies a dual mission. Primarily, its volunteers provide
an important service to the community by making available clothing and household
items, both donated and consigned, to the Rockville community at very affordable
prices. When clients are referred by local agencies, the clothing is provided
free of charge. Secondly, all proceeds, beyond our operating expenses, support
community outreach projects.
When did The Bargain Box
open?
The Bargain Box opened its doors in the fall of 1957 in old Court House
Square in property owned by Irene Young.
The Women of Christ Church
received a $500 loan from the Vestry to begin their venture. This loan was
repaid within a few months.
How did The Bargain Box
get started?
Betty Diamond (our church secretary (and CES’s Donna Diamond’s
mother-in-law) visited the Pennyworth Shop run by Grace Church in Silver Spring.
Betty believed that Christ Church should start its own shop. (Pennyworth is
still in business, too!)
Betty then sought the help of
other parishioners: Henrietta Shearman, Betty Frank, Liz Doonan, Ginny Persson,
Edna Black, Estelle Berberian, Amanda Phillips, Dorothy and John Dawson, Hazel
Campbell, Paul & Alma Heister, Bob Gordon, Louise Stark, Emily Gardner, Sis
Betts, Kay Thomas, Winnie Ricketts, Inez Gude, Sarann Barnsley, Madeleine Erb,
Freda McFadden, Sue Linthicum, to name just a few!
There were many, many others
who staffed the store each week, sorted and priced donations, and ticketed
consignments. (The poem lists many folks by first names only!)
How did the store get its
name?
Liz Doonan thought of “The Bargain Box” and the women agreed.
The women had already vetoed
these suggestions: The Episcopal Emporium, Thrift Shop, Jumble
Shop, Pandora’s Box, as well as, The Garrett. Thank you,
ladies….
Imagine having to answer the
phone,
“Good afternoon, The Episcopal Emporium”
Where is The Bargain Box?
In May 2003, we moved to our current location at 398 Hungerford Drive (Route
355) with the help of Dave Craig’s trucks, the Youth Group kids and families,
plus many volunteers, friends, and parishioners.
Other locations around city
included one next to Bombay Bistro on West Montgomery Avenue, one in Hungerford
Mall, and another store located very near the present store at 398 Hungerford
Drive.
Our 5-year lease is up in May
2008, which we will be able to renew. With Phase II of the city’s reconstruction
encompassing our block, we will be “on the road again” in the not too distant
future.
Please help
us find a new location for our next 50 years!
What does The Bargain Box
do with its profits?
In 1957, The Bargain Box used its profits to assist with the church building
fund and its future expansion projects.
Who volunteers at
The Bargain Box?
Angels! We have about 70 volunteers who work at least once a
month and some who work several times a week. We have several couples and
families who volunteer together. Our volunteers are young & young at heart!
We have teenagers,
octogenarians, and everything in between. Plus we have a woman who just turned
90 who works several days each month! I just did the math…with teenagers, our
average age is 51.5…without them, it’s 67.5!!
Please consider volunteering!
Many hands make light work…or at least help make the work lighter!
Who shops at The Bargain Box?
If you don’t, you should!
Most of our volunteers find
bargains each time they work…we are some of our best customers!
We also have regulars who are
“well-off” and/or “thrifty”. But the majority of our customers have
limited incomes and shopping options…the young family whose tight budget makes
shopping at Kmart a real stretch…the men and women living at a shelter in need
of a suit for a job interview…families who ship suitcases jam-packed full of
clothing “back home” to relatives in under-developed countries. The Bargain Box
is also for people who for whatever reason are at such a low point in their
lives that they need some free clothing until they’re on their feet again.
That is our mission.
What are The Bargain Box
expenses?
In 1957, rent was $100 a month, but increased to $175 a month during coal
buying season!
For 10 years (1988 – 1998) The
Bargain Box was rent free, due to the generosity of Mr. Kimmel who owned the
property behind Magruder’s.
In 2007, our rent and property
taxes are $2591.39 a month!
The Bargain Box
Outreach Policy:
At its March 22, 2005
meeting, the Vestry unanimously passed the following Outreach Principles and
Policy proposed by The Bargain Box Committee. Through these new guidelines, The
Bargain Box looks forward to supporting and expanding outreach in our community
in the name of Christ Church.
-
The Bargain Box policy for
outreach is to make a difference by supporting projects that make a direct
impact on alleviating human need.
- Support for local outreach projects will be
restricted to Rockville and nearby Montgomery County as highest priority in
order to maximize our efforts and not to spread our funds too thin.
- The highest priority will be given to outreach
projects supported by the Christ Church Outreach committee, Christ Church
Youth Group, and Christ Episcopal School.
-
The Bargain Box will work
with the Outreach Committee, the Youth Group, CES, the City of Rockville and
Community Ministries to maximize the usefulness of our outreach donations.
-
The Bargain Box may donate to
other outreach projects and organizations that are supported by Christ Church
members and by volunteers at The Bargain Box, whether they are Christ Church
members or not.
- Outreach projects supported by the Washington
Diocese would be considered.
-
National and international
outreach projects would be considered provided they have a direct impact on
alleviating human need, such as relief for disasters (Tsunami relief, 9-11,
etc.)
Donation of the Month
In October 2006, The Bargain
Box committee began a Donation of the Month program. A one-time donation of $100
is made to a designated local agency or Christ Church/CES project that does not
receive significant funding from other sources.
November 2006: Rainbow
Place Shelter for Women at Rockville Presbyterian, for clothing and meals
December 2006: The City of Rockville Holiday Drive Fund, for holiday gift
baskets
In 2007:
January: CC/CES Hat & Mitten Tree collection, to benefit St. Anne’s Home in
Hyattsville
February: Hearts & Homes for Youth, Silver Spring, for meals & supplies
March : ESOL Literacy Group at Christ Church, for new books and other
teaching materials
April: Frederick Rescue Mission, for annual graduation celebration
May: CMR Hope Housing Program, in honor of Mother’s Day
“Sarah’s House” Women’s Transitional
Housing
June: Chase Men’s Shelter, in honor of Father’s Day
July: Rockville HELP (formerly Rockville FISH)
Financial Assistance Committee for help
with prescriptions, bills
August: Manna Food Center, food for Montgomery County residents
September: Episcopal Center for Children Washington DC
Educational Treatment center for children ages 5-17)
October: Mobile Medical Care, Bethesda, MD
Medical van provides low-cost/free medical care to uninsured county patients,
with stop at
Episcopal Church of the Ascension, Gaithersburg
Annual donations:
·
CCYG Summer
Workcamp Mission Trip $1000
·
EDOW Spring
Break Mission Trips ($100 per CC/CES attendee)
Consignment Fundraisers:
·
Christ Church
Youth Group (annually)
·
Christ Church
Choir Trip
Free Clothing Program:
The Bargain Box supports a free clothing program for Rockville and nearby
Montgomery County residents referred by Community Ministries of Rockville or
other recognized social service agencies. Clients may receive free clothing once
every three months. Clients in greater need are handled individually. There are
a few homeless “street people” who receive clothing without referrals. We donate
an average of $1500 in free clothing to individuals and families each year.
Other Treasures:
When The Bargain Box receives donations of wonderful items that we
cannot sell for one reason or another, we look for other agencies that can use
them. Recently, we received a very large donation of brand new, factory wrapped
“Beanie Baby” stuffed bears. Since they were of only one style (September!) we
felt it would take us forever to sell them and felt they needed a better home.
The County’s Victim Assistance program was very excited to receive
the bears for the women and young children they serve. The Lion’s Club
is the recipient of eye glasses that come in as donations. The Frederick
Mission continues to pick up outdated or soiled clothing each week.
Rainbow Place Women’s Shelter is open from November to March. From
April through the summer, we pass on donations of sweatpants, sweatshirts, and
warm nightgowns for their storage closets.
Donations are accepted daily. We request that your “gently
used” seasonal clothing and household items be clean, wrinkle-free, and
ready for sale. Since we have limited storage space off-season items are often
donated to other charities.
Consignments are
accepted on Thursdays & Fridays, 10 - noon
Hours are
Monday - Saturday, 10 am – 4:30 pm. Closed Sunday and major holidays.
Cai Conway Memorial
Donation
Cai Conway, a member of Christ Church with her husband Ted, was the beloved
manager of The Bargain Box for several years until she passed away in 2001.
Their daughter, Melissa Opryszko, along with Melissa’s husband, George, and
their children, Alex and Anna, have been regular volunteers at The Bargain Box,
also. For two years Melissa worked under a grant from the World Bank for Johns
Hopkins to bring clean water systems to rural villages near Kabul, Afghanistan.
She shared with The Bargain Box committee many pictures and stories of her work
with the families she has met and the places she has visited. Melissa was given
a $1000 donation, along with a letter that read…
“On behalf of all the volunteers at The Bargain
Box, and in honor of your mother, Cai Conway, please accept this donation of
$1000 for the school children in Kabul. We will let you decide how the money
should be spent most effectively.
We wish you every blessing as you “go in peace to
love and serve the Lord” in a distant corner of our world. We look forward to
your safe return with another slide show about the schools. We also anxiously
await your return as a Bargain Box volunteer!”
During one of her last trips to
Afghanistan, Melissa presented The Bargain Box donation of $1000 to Dr. Sayed
Meer Jan, Assistant Professor and Chief of the Pediatric Surgery Department of
the local teaching hospital. The Pediatric Unit had been two small make-shift
rooms. With these funds and others they will be able to create a separate
examination room for young children, purchase a television and recording
equipment to film procedures for training medical staff and students, and build
a separate entrance for the children’s unit.
Dr. Jan’s thank you note read,
“…I would like to extend my sincere gratitude and acknowledgements for your
assistance which enabled us to bring a lot of positive changes in our treatment
and training programs. May God bless your mother and may her soul rest in
peace.” Melissa shared pictures of the nearly finished project at our
recent committee meeting.
Thank you to one and all for donating the “junk” from your cabinets and
closets to The Bargain Box.
It is mainly the sale of these “treasures” which allows us to continue our
outreach mission.
We look forward to serving Christ Church and the
Rockville community for another 50 years!!
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