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RED ROCK NEWS, Sedona, Arizona Friday, September 17, 2010 - 9A
VOICEOFTHEVIL
Paw Prints Thrift Shop: Bargain spot in Village of Oak Creek
By Lu Stitt
LARSON NEWSPAPERS
The Paw Prints Thrift Shop has a purpose higher
than selling gently used items at a bargain price.
It's about dogs, and cats and other domestic crit-
ters who find their way to the Humane Society of
Sedona shelter. The shop opened in the Village of
Oak Creek in November 1996 for the sole purpose
of earning money to help the lost, abandoned,
abused and stray animals of greater Sedona.
"The shop was started by the auxiliary group
of the humane society then. There were about 17
or 18 women. That was the core group. Most of
them have leR the area in the last 15 years," shop
manager Dede Nigh said.
The first shop was down State Route 179 from
the current location at 6040 SR 179. Evelyn
Baldwin found the place. The shop was open just
three days a week, and was small. As the turn
of the century came around, it was obvious Paw
Prints needed a bigger place. Gene Munson put up
the money for the lot the current shop occupies,
Nigh said.
"It took the best part of a year to build it and
we opened here in 2001," she said. "Now we have
about 60 volunteers between the front and the back
-- retail and receiving."
Pickup and delivery of large items is also avail-
able for a small fee. Nigh's husband, Bill Nigh,
drives the cargo van.
"If it weren't for the people in Sedona and their
donations, plus all of our great volunteers, we
wouldn't be here," Nigh said.
Before anything goes on the sales floor at Paw
Prints, volunteers check it over for any needed
repairs or cleaning, and make sure electronics and
appliances work. All of the clothing gets washed,
and so do the dishes, silverware, vases, glasses and
cups. Furniture gets dusted and cleaned, too.
"We like to get items ready to put out, but that's
not always the case," assistant shop manager
Ansley Silvernagel said. "If we can't make it look
good, we don't put it out."
None of the items received ever goes to waste.
Overflow items go to Kachina Point or the
Veterans of Foreign Wars. Unsalable items always
find some use, somewhere.
"We like to take in donations people would
buy themselves. Sometimes we get fur coats and
they'don't really'sell well so we send them to the
shelter. They get cut up to make blankets for the
little puppies and kittens," Estelle Kingston said,
cupping her hands to indicate the size of a small
puppy. Kingston is one of the original volunteers.
Paw Prints has just about any item a person
could be looking for from wiring, toys, clothing,
shoes, furniture, dishes and kitchen items, jewelry,
books, health care equipment, lamps, vases, baby
items, hardware, tools and holiday decorations
-- at thrift shop prices.
"We're like a boutique. We pride ourselves
on not putting out junk," Silvernagel said. "We
som'etimes bring in antiques. We separate those
Tom Hood/Larson Newspapers
VOLUNTEERS DOLORES BARRETT, right, and Estelle Kingston check prices on books purchased by shop-
pers at the Paw Prints Thrift Shop on Tuesday, Sept. 14, in the Village of Oak Creek. In 2009, volunteers
at the shop clocked 7,488 hours at the store.
• out. One of our volunteers has a brother who is an
appraiser, and we will consult with other experts
before we"sell it."
"We've learned a lot, and we use our gut
instinct," Nigh said.
Items are grouped by category, and in some
areas, the volunteers have created rooms, such
as a living room with all of the pieces, or a table
set with dishes, place mats and a vase of artificial
flowers.
"We keep things fresh here so whenever people
come in they see something new," Nigh said.
Coming up are several fall holidays, and Paw
Prints is ready to celebrate. Volunteers are putting
out all of the Halloween and Thanksgiving items
received throughout the year. Walk in and it may be
a bit spooky for a few weeks with j ack-o'-lanterns,
scary masks, ghosts, goblins and witches.
Then there is Christmas: In nearly half of the
storeroom in boxes, bags and sitting on their own
are dozens and dozens of Christmas decorations
from trees to garland, tiny ornaments and knick-
knacks. Christmas is Paw Prints' big time of year.
First Nigh and her volunteers take about two to
three weeks just pricing the items then several
days to decorate the store, she said.
"This year we're doing something different. It
will be a nighttime festival that is going to be a
lot of fun," Nigh said. "We'll have an artificial
Christmas tree lot -- an old-fashioned Christmas
tree lot "-- with hot cider and cocoa, holiday music
and bare lightbulbs hanging on a wire across
the trees. We have a lot of trees. The only thing
missing will be snow, we think."
Not only local residents shop at Paw Prints.
Kingston said she is amazed by the number of
tourists who drop in.
"I've heard there are some tours that go around
the country just to thrift shops," Kingston said.
"We had a woman come in who worked at a
mission in Mongolia. She told us when she was
there unpacking boxes they were from Sedona.
When she looked at the young man helping her,
she realized he was a man she met at [a Sedona
grocery store]."
If people are looking for a certain item, they can
put their name and request in Paw Prints' wish
book. If the exact or similar items comes in; one of
the volunteers will call.
"We also just started an e-mail account so people
can check with us online," Silvernagel said.
To further help the cause, Nigh said Paw Prints
i s getting ready to release a cookbook of favorite
recipes from the volunteers at the shop and at the
shelter.
"Those are always the best cookbooks because
you know each one is that person,s favorite,"
Silvernagel said.
Since Paw Prints owns the shop building free
and clear, 100 percent of the proceeds go to the
humane society.
Nigh encourages anyone who would like to
volunteer somewhere to consider the Paw Prints
Thrift Shop. Volunteers usually work one day a
week. Volunteering has some benefits. After 90
days each volunteer qualifies for a shop discount.
"Our volunteers more than earn their discount,"
Nigh said.
The thrift shop pays its own way, and then
some, Nigh said. In 2009 volunteers clocked
7,488 hours at the shop; the equivalent of eight
full-time employees. As far as money, Humane
Society of Sedona Executive Director B. Skielvig
said the thrift shop contributed $216,843 in
2009.
"That roughly 18 percent to 19 percent of our
operating costs, which are now about $750,000 a
year," Skielvig said. "We rely heavily on that."
With the purchase of the cargo van in 2009,
the thrift shop was able to carry larger items like
furniture and appliances. It also helped a great deal
when people finished estate sales and donated the
unsold items.
Paw Prints Thrift Shop is at 6040 SR 179 in
the Village of Oak Creek. The shop is open from
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For
pickup, call ahead at 282-4635.
Lu Stiff can be reached at
282-7795, ext. 122, or e-mail
lu @ larsonnewspapers.com
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