Among the top New Year’s resolutions among Americans, “getting organized” ranks 3rd. It’s that desire to de-clutter that leads many to their local thrift store to drop off their unwanted goods after the holidays.
North County Christian School (NCCS) Thrift Shop Manager Debi Carroll said this trend occurred before the pandemic.
“After Christmas, people would bring us their old stuff because they got new stuff or sometimes just brand new stuff that they didn’t need or want,” Carroll said.
While Carroll said the amount of donations the store receives month-to-month is consistent, the quality of donations they receive increases around this time.
“We seem to get maybe a little better donations and that would be after Christmas,” Carroll said.
One donor, Keith Epperson, said he stops by NCCS once or twice each year to declutter his home.
“When we’re doing some cleaning around the house we don’t want items to throw away in the landfill. We’ll bring them through here,” Epperson said.
He views it as a win for both the environment and the community.
“We didn’t throw them away and it’s helping the community more,” Epperson said.
Carroll said the store runs on donations from the community alone.
“Our community here just overwhelms us with goodness…and we only take donations. Like we don’t get donations like larger thrift stores from L.A." Carroll said, “It’s strictly what people in town bring to us.”
