All Saints’ Parish Thrift Shop plans move to Harbeson

All Saints’ Parish Thrift Shop has installed a sign announcing its new home in Harbeson in front of the former Old Wood Delaware property.

The thrift shop has been looking for a new home for four years because the property in Rehoboth is slated for redevelopment, said Joanna Carty, thrift ministries director for the Episcopal Parish of All Saints’ Church & St. George’s Chapel. The new location has a lot of potential, she said, and it falls within the church’s service area because St. George’s is in Harbeson.

Officials announced earlier this month that the Rehoboth location on the Forgotten Mile will be closing Saturday, Jan. 3. Carty said reasonably priced real estate in the Rehoboth area is hard to find. She said she was close to finding a location earlier this year, but it fell through. Undeterred, she kept looking.

“It really felt like God was guiding us,” said Carty.

After a tour of the property with the owner, Carty said she met with parish officials to go over what it would take to make the property a working thrift shop. The thrift shop wanted to own its own property, but it’s a major investment, she said.

The church closed on the property in September. Instead of one large building, the new location features three separate buildings – an old barn, an old house and an old garage.

Carty said the details for how the new property will work are still being figured out, but a plan is beginning to come together. The barn will be all thrift, the garage will be torn down and replaced with a pole building at some point in the future, and the house will have thrift on the first floor, she said.

There’s an apartment on the second floor of the house, but it’s unclear how that will be used, said Carty.

That area of Route 9 is growing, she said, and there’s excitement for the thrift shop to be moving there because there’s nothing like it.

“There’s a lot of work to be done, but we’re working with some great contractors, and we’ll get it done,” said Carty.

In addition to closing the old location and preparing the new one, Carty is overseeing the transformation of the thrift shop’s Midway location. Soon it will be the only place the thrift shop is accepting donations.

The final day donations will be taken at the Rehoboth location is Saturday, Dec. 13. Beginning Monday, Dec. 15, donations will be accepted only at the Midway location, behind the store.

For more information, call the Rehoboth store at 302-226-3123 or the Midway store at 302-827-2041. To arrange for furniture and bulk item donation pickup, call 302-640-6220 or email allsaintsandstgeorgesthriftshop@gmail.com.