Rayce Patterson | The Echo
Grant County Rescue Mission (GCRM) will be moving the location of their thrift store on May 1.
GCRM's Mission Mart is currently located on South Western Avenue in Marion. Mission Mart is a thrift store that helps funds many of GCRM's programs, but the public often is not aware that the store and the organization are connected.
"I would talk to people on a regular basis that had no idea that the Grant County Rescue Mission had a thrift store," Executive Director Rick Berbereia said. "We want people to understand that when you shop at our thrift store or you donate goods to our thrift store, you're helping promote life change."
This is the reason behind the rebranding of Mission Mart. When GCRM's thrift store opens on South Adams Street, it will be called ReNewed Boutique and Thrift.
One of the other issues that caused GCRM to move the thrift store location was operational costs. Thankfully, First United Methodist Church was looking to lease one of their buildings. The location plus a common mission made the choice to move into First United Methodist Church's property an easy one, according to Berbereia.
"I felt like if we wanted to be good stewards of our community's donations, then we needed to find a way to cut our operational costs down," Berbereia said.
The funding from ReNewed Boutique and Thrift goes towards GCRM's various programs, including shelters for men, women and children, as well as a recovery program for the men and women.
GCRM also has their Meals on Wheels program, which provides food services to people in Grant County that are unable to get to GCRM's facilities. According to Berbereia, Meals on Wheels provided over 70,000 meals in 2018 alone.
"We are very excited about our new name and location," Board President Troy Simpson said. "The new building gives us opportunities to serve the community in ways we have never been able to do in the past."
According to a press release GCRM issued on March 27, ReNewed Boutique and Thrift will have a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 3 at 11:30 a.m. The Marion-Grant County Chamber of Commerce and the Gas City Area Chamber of Commerce will both attend. There will be an additional celebration on May 4 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for the community.
