Thrift store needs new building
<p>Danielle Christopherson arranges shoes on a rack at the Garden of Eden Thrift and Variety Store in Columbia Falls. Photo by Aaric Bryan / Daily Inter Lake</p>
The Garden of Eden Thrift and Variety nonprofit secondhand store will be moving from its current location at First Avenue West and U.S. 2 because the building has been sold.
Allen and Danielle Christopherson opened for business March 8, 2013, with the motto “Planting seeds of growth in our community.”
The couple’s initial goal was to raise money for Columbia Falls scholarships and school activities, such as a graduation party that provides a safe and secure environment for the celebrating seniors.
“It’s been pretty incredible,” Allen Christopherson said about the fundraising. “The community has embraced us. The support has been humbling.”
The Christophersons handed out nine $1,000 scholarships over the past two school years. Now they’re hoping to rent 5,000 square feet of retail space in Columbia Falls so they can continue their nonprofit endeavor.
O’Brien and Melanie Byrd bought the former Western Building Center site and adjacent lots from OKO Properties and will relocate their liquor store there. The Byrds also plan to develop the site and make it less of an eyesore.
“We don’t have any leads on other space,” Allen said about the thrift store’s move. “There’s not a lot of 5,000- to 6,000-square-foot buildings in Columbia Falls.”
The Christophersons are no longer accepting donated goods at their store as they prepare for what the future holds. They expect to be out of the building by early October, and the Byrds expect to be open at their new location by Oct. 31.
The Christophersons moved here from the Yakima, Wash., area and have lived in Columbia Falls about 15 years. Their two children grew up here and went all the way through Columbia Falls public schools. Allen had worked mostly in construction, and Danielle worked at Costco for 21 years.
“My wife and I, we walked away from our secular jobs,” Allen said about starting the thrift store. “We’ve been running the thrift store with very few volunteers.”
Being on the front line in the thrift-store world has enabled them to help many needy families whose stories have touched them. Allen described a grandmother from Browning raising four grandchildren who was brought to tears when he gave one of the children a bicycle.
“The change in me started when I saw what a 10-dollar bike could do to impact lives,” he said.
Store hours at Garden of Eden have been trimmed back to 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday to allow the Christophersons to sell down their inventory and prepare for closing the store.
The business operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Anyone wanting to financially contribute to Garden of Eden or share information about possible retail space can call Allen at 314-0726.