MARSHALL –Volunteering at the Avera Marshall Thrift Store was a chance to give back to the community.

Some volunteers also said they loved the opportunity to spend time together with fellow volunteers and community members. They shared some of their memories of volunteering at the store after learning last week their services were no longer needed.

“I’ve gotten to know so many people I wouldn’t have otherwise,” Helen Langer said.

Langer started volunteering at the Thrift Store in 2012. Over the years, she said, “I’d see people that I’ve known from the university, from the YMCA, from church … all different avenues of life.”

“It has meant a lot to many people,” Janette Koch said of the Thrift Store.

“It’s amazing how many hours some volunteers have put in,” she said.

The Thrift Store has been part of the Marshall community for more than 35 years, dating back to when the city had a municipally-owned hospital. Over its history, the store has raised money to help support the hospital, and has moved and expanded a couple times — from space at the Marshall hospital campus to its current location on East Main Street.

This spring, the Thrift Store is making a change to its business model, going from a volunteer-staffed store to one with paid employees. In a news release, Avera Marshall spokespeople said the change would allow the store in the future to be open more hours.

Langer and Koch said their time volunteering at the thrift store started out with enjoying visits to the store. Gradually, they started volunteering more often.

“It just kind of draws you in,” Koch said.

The atmosphere among the volunteers was like a family, and it also felt good to help the community, she said.

Volunteers all had their own strengths, whether it was cleaning or organizing donations, designing displays, or just being fun to work with.

“Some would just make us laugh,” she said.

Koch said the people she worked with were some of the best parts of volunteering at the Thrift Store. Interacting with customers was another one of the high points.

“You had regulars. You had some people who stopped in every day,” she said.

Some returning customers weren’t from the Marshall area, but would make a point to stop by the store when they were passing through town, she said.

Langer said the friendly atmosphere at the store carried over to the people shopping there. She recalled a time that a customer found the perfect dress for her wedding at the Thrift Store. When the customer went to the register to purchase the dress, she found out another anonymous shopper had paid for it, Langer said.

“It was that kind of place,” she said.

“I’m amazed at the generosity of the community, and what they gave to that store,” Koch said.

Over the years, area residents dropped off some high-quality donations, she said.

In addition to helping re-use items, the Thrift Store was also important for recycling efforts in the Marshall area, Langer said. Over the years, tons of clothing went to the Central Minnesota Clothing Resource, she said.

Avera Marshall spokespeople said the Thrift Store recycled 12,000 pounds of metal and 80,000 pounds of fiber in the past year, in addition to serving almost 56,000 customers.

Koch and Langer said volunteers worked to make the Thrift store the best it could be. Langer said the store was closed during the COVID pandemic, but in the last few weeks before re-opening, “We cleaned, and we cleared out, and we had so much fun.”

It was exciting when the store expanded at its East Main Street location, Koch said — not only was the store bigger and brighter, but volunteers worked hard on displays.

“We were proud of the work we did,” she said.

“It made you part of something bigger than yourself,” Langer said.

Proceeds form the store have also helped support the hospital. Since the 1980s, the store and other volunteer efforts have cumulatively raised nearly $6 million, Avera Marshall spokespeople said.

“Beyond the impact the store makes in our community, it’s remarkable to think back on its financial impact over the years,” said Avera Marshall Regional President and CEO Debbie Streier. “Proceeds from sales enhance local health care and have contributed toward so many pivotal projects and programs like the construction of the Avera Cancer Institute, advances in local surgical equipment, the addition of 3-D mammography technology, the dialysis water room and so much more.”

The Thrift Store is going through a transition period in April and May, to allow for hiring and training staff, updates to the cash register system and more, Avera Marshall spokespeople said. In addition, Avera Marshall said they hoped to collaborate with Advance Opportunities to create new work opportunities for clients.

“We are excited about this new approach to carrying forward the vision of those who initially founded the Thrift Store and all those who have been part of its success since then,” Streier said. “We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has played a part in this legacy. When we look back on the time and energy put into this operation, the dedication is just astounding.”

The store will be open on Fridays only during the transition period. Donation room hours will remain from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday.