This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Calvary Chapel of Salt Lake will have its grand opening for the Calvary Thrift Store at 3200 West and 7800 South in West Jordan on April 26. The event will feature a free barbecue, deals on merchandise and a ribbon cutting ceremony.
"It's a nonprofit," said Richard Norton, who is part of Calvary Chapel's leadership organizing the thrift store. "We only have three paid employees right now, the rest will be volunteers. This is a ministry. These are people with a heart for service giving their time to help the community."
Calvary Chapel is the mother of several Salt Lake charities, most of which operate out of the church itself. The nondenominational Christians have a pregnancy resource center, rescue mission and prison ministry among other outreach and charity programs for struggling families and individuals. Norton said the Calvary Thrift Store will donate whatever is not sold to other charities or outlets.
"All the money gets out into the community," Norton said. "We donate all the extra books to libraries. Big Brothers, Big Sisters gets clothes we don't sell. Nothing gets thrown away at all, everything can be put to good use."
Norton said the church plans to bring a boutique atmosphere to the often drab thrift store motif. Some members of the church happen to be interior designers and decorators who volunteer to help the store's layout, presentation, lighting and decoration.
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