All Good Things Shoppe reaches one million dollars given back

Jun. 4—GROVE CITY — All Good Things, a charity thrift store in Grove City, reached a milestone Friday as it surpassed $1 million in donations in the 10 years since it has opened.

When the store opened, the late Debbie Kochems had an idea to have people donate things they don't want anymore, and the store would resell them and use the money for charity.

Originally, the store was just hoping to reach $75 a day to help pay the bills needed to operate, and any extra would go to a charity. Today, the store easily operates and the checks it hands out are bigger than ever.

"I just blows your mind to see how far we have come," said Jerry Mahaffey, an original member of the group. "I remember when we were hoping to survive, and now we're thriving."

To help celebrate the milestone, the store invited community members to enjoy cookies and refreshments as the store handed out the last few checks to break the mark.

The store came into the ceremony needing about $25,000 in donations to break the million mark, so staff did just that, with five $5,000 checks.

Members kicked off the ceremony by giving a few words.

"We want to thank the community, anyone who donates, this allows us to continue and give back to the people who need it," said board president Connie Dicola.

Mahaffey followed up with a prayer.

"There's an old hymn, 'Count your Blessings.' The chorus describes where we are at," Mahaffey said. "It goes: 'Count your blessings, name them one by one. Count your blessings, see what God has done.' Today we celebrate 1 million blessings."

Susan Black, leader of the giving committee, gave thanks to all board members and the 55 volunteers who help the store out.

Officials including state Rep. Tim Bonner, R-17, Pine Township, and borough Councilman Jim Henry congratulated the staff for the community's success.

All Good Things distributed the $5,000 checks to the following organizations:

—Mercer County Food Bank, which provides meals to people and families at risk of food insecurity. Development Director Alexis Spence-Locke and Executive Director Becky Page represented the food bank.

—Tails of Hope, a spay/neuter clinic in Hermitage that has been providing services to pets and also has a catch-neuter-release program for stray animals. Members Diane Webster and Luanne Shernisky represented Tails of Hope.

—The Butler County Humane Society, a no-kill animal shelter that rescues stray animals and finds them new homes. Sheri Dietrich represented the Humane Society.

—Disabled American Veterans, which provides aid to any veteran disabled in any way, with help that includes financial assistance and rides for medical appointments.

—The Franklin/Grove City YMCA received the donation that put All Good Things to the $1 million mark. The organization has donated monthly for years to the YMCA. Adam Cook, CEO of the YMCA branch, accepted the check.

Ty Kohler can be contacted at [email protected].