O.L.L. Thrift Shop Home to 'Senior Sorority'

"Who needs therapy when you have the thrift shop?"

This rhetorical question was once posed to me by my mother, Peg Paone, who volunteered at the Our Lady of Lourdes thrift shop from 1987 until her death in 2009.

I decided to explore that question and ventured into the basement of the parish residence on the first day of business of the thrift shop's 33rd year.

I had been down there before and this day was no different. The place was bright and clean with the buzz of chatter from the volunteers who work there and the steady stream of regular customers who came and went.

The chatter, which at times elevates to a cackle, comes from the camaraderie amongst the volunteers. Ginny Lien, one of the founding mothers of the organization, credits it to their similar personalities. "We're all cut from the same cloth," she said.

This enables them to have discussions about whatever is on their minds. Their talks often resemble group therapy sessions.

"A lot of us are widows and we go home to an empty house and sometimes it's very consoling to know that there are other people with the same problem. By discussing it, we sort of accept the fact that there is a way to be happy and be alone," she said.

One of the regular customers is Liz Wilson, a graduate of Our Lady of Lourdes School whose children are currently enrolled there.

"There's no other place like this," said Wilson. "You feel the people know you and care about you. You just want to come back and just visit with everyone."

And she does exactly that. Wilson has been coming to the thrift shop to donate or purchase items and socialize with the volunteers for about 10 years. "You bring stuff in and you bring stuff out. It's nice," she said.

Another regular, Patricia Salmon, has been frequenting the thrift shop for 13 years. A member of the parish, she purchased three Hummel plates, which she collects. (There were five in the set but someone else beat her to the other two moments before.)

The customers aren't strictly members of the parish. Edgar Calixte and Charles Ivey, both single parents originally from Haiti, live in Roosevelt but discovered the OLL thrift shop 

Ivey is a repeat customer but this was Calixte's first time at the shop. He bought shoes and a shirt for his daughter and a Mets shirt for his son. 

Aside from Lien, the other founding mothers of the thrift shop, Helen Driscoll and Mary Potten, are both deceased. Another long-time volunteer, Lee Ward, passed away a few weeks ago. She voluteered to the very end, even while enduring chemotherapy sessions.

Janis Auwarter has been volunteering there the entire time although she doesn't consider herself a founder. Just about every volunteer is in her 70s with two in her 80s.

The ladies still feel the loss of another long-time volunteer, Adelaide Flaherty, who has passed on. "She was important," said Auwarter. "She was the boss. If we had a question she'd say, 'This is how it's going to be done,' and we wouldn't argue."

In its 33 years in business, the thrift shop has grossed $372,462, which averages out to about $11,000 per year. The money goes to the parish general fund but one year, it was specifically earmarked for the renovation of the ladies' room in the church basement.

Lien likens the atmosphere to a sisterhood or a sorority. I asked her if there are any keggers or toga parties at this sorority and she answered, "At the end of the year we usually go out for lunch."

The thrift shop is open from September through June; 9:30 am to 2:30 pm on Wednesdays and the first Saturday of each month from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm.