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2008-06-17 issue:

Mennonites in the News: A ‘compatible' move

Harrisonburg Gift & Thrift plans facility expansion

by Kate Prahlad, Daily News Record

Print Article

Harrisonburg Gift & Thrift Shop in Virginia is getting a chance to spread its mission of "good stewardship" a little bit further.

The company plans to build a 14,700-square-foot building to house one of Gift & Thrift's three divisions, in addition to a healthy eating café and a financial services company, said Allon Lefever, president of the store.

Construction will start in August and be completed in a year. The new facility will be right next to the store's existing property on Mount Clinton Pike.

The new store will have several "green" measures that reflect the ideals of sustainability and recycling, said Deb King, general manager of the store.

Solar panels will heat the facility's water, and the roof will be white to reflect heat and save on cooling costs. It also will have high-efficiency lighting and use some recycled materials for carpets and ceilings.

More Space
Inside, the new facility will host a set of businesses that share the same ideals as Gift & Thrift, Lefever said.

The building will provide a larger retail space for Artisans' Hope, a store that sells "fair trade" products located in the corner of Gift & Thrift's original building. It is a division of Gift & Thrift.

A Bowl of Good Café also will set up in the building, as well as offices for Mennonite Mutual Aid and Mennonite Aid Exchange.

The café has been around for about three years, said founder Katrina Didot.

Didot and Rachael Dorsey became partners to open the café, which they say will provide "healthy, hearty food with an international zing."

Didot said she does her best to shop locally and use natural ingredients, but also bring in inspirations from many different regions of the world.

That international flair on the menu will be reflected next door in Artisans' Hope.

Sara Halteman, manager of Artisans' Hope, said the idea of recycling products fits well with the store, which offers products made from recycled items like oil drums and discarded fabrics from countries around the world.

The expansion will allow for the fair-trade store to offer more items and help out more people, Halteman said.

Gift & Thrift, which moved into the original building four years ago, has two other internal divisions in addition to Artisans' Hope: A World of Good Thrift Shop and Booksavers of Virginia, an online used bookstore. They will expand into the vacated space.

There also will be a resource and informational space for Mennonite Central Committee, and a community room that will be available to rent.

The space, about five acres, was "underutilized," as the businesses inside the original store were growing tight on space, Lefever explained.

Mennonite Mutual Aid, also moving into the building, is a financial services company that focuses on Mennonite and Brethren constituents, said Glen Kauffman, agency manager of MMA.

"We're just excited. This puts us close to our main constituents," Kauffman said, adding that the move comes at a time when the company had begun to outgrow its current space. "It's the perfect marriage. We're compatible in our organizations and values and we just want to support each other."

By Kate Prahlad, Daily News Record, Harrisonburg, Va.

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