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Glenna
Smith, who will be 90 years old in June, has worked as a telephone
operator, a schoolteacher and a grocery retailer. She lives in San
Jose, on the Logan side of the county line. She began working for
the Pink Shutter Thrift Shop in 1973 as a paid employee, and though
she "officially retired," she still works there as a
volunteer, averaging about eight hours a week. Glenna says, "It’s
always been fascinating because you never know from one day to the
next what you’ll find in the boxes! I think the Pink Shutter is a
real community asset, and over the years it’s been a great service
to the community." She adds, "I’ve made a world of
friends here that I really treasure. They’ve been so good to
me."
[Donna Griffin rings up a sale at the Pink Shutter]
Donna
Griffin, another volunteer, is 77 years old and has lived in Lincoln
since 1940. She retired from Lehn & Fink after working for 42
years as the secretary to the plant manager. When she started
working there, it was known as Sterling Drugs. She has volunteered
at the Pink Shutter since 1991, when a newspaper article about the
shop caught her attention. As a member of the Abraham Lincoln
Memorial Hospital Auxiliary Board, Donna serves as a liaison between
board and the thrift shop. She also serves on the board of the
American Cancer Society of Logan County.
She
says that working at the thrift shop gives her "something
worthwhile to do, and I enjoy the auxiliary." She recalls a
memorable experience when the wife of a state congressman brought in
one of his suits and returned later to see if she could get it back.
"She said he wasn’t finished with it yet, but it was too
late. It had already sold."
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Thanks
to volunteers like Glenna and Donna, the Pink Shutter
Thrift Shop has raised $514, 337.00 since 1986. This has
enabled the auxiliary to finance projects and purchases
for Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital such as cardiac
rehabilitation equipment, mammography grids, an EKG page
writer and a surgical laser. Currently, the profits from
the thrift shop’s retail sales are pledged to a new
labor/delivery/postpartum room for the OB floor at the
hospital.
The
Pink Shutter opened on Pulaski Street in November 1961 and
moved to 210 S. Chicago St. in 1968. The shop has been at
its present location, 129 S. Sangamon, since February
1973.
There
are just three paid employees: Jennifer Heidbreder,
manager; Nancy Puls, assistant manager; and Ruby Doyle, a
full-time sales associate. All other operations are
covered by 40 regular volunteers. This March the Pink
Shutter had 1,750 customers and sold 10,475 items.
Barbara
Dahm, director of volunteer and special services at ALMH,
acknowledges the volunteers’ part in their success.
"We appreciate everything they do for us. We just can’t
thank them enough. Volunteers really are very special
people. We (the Pink Shutter) are a part of the hospital,
and in helping here, they are making a great contribution
to the community."
[Ruby Doyle and
Glenna Smith mark prices]
Manager
Jennifer Heidbreder says, "The volunteers are a
unique group of individuals from different walks of life.
I think some of them, if they didn’t have this, they
wouldn’t know what to do. It’s been a lot of fun
working with these ladies. I’ve learned a lot from them
talking about the old days."
[Curtis
Sutterfield]
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