Lincoln Mission Mart celebrates 16 years of service to the community

[June 24, 2010]  The Lincoln Mission Mart is celebrating its 16th anniversary. To commemorate the milestone the store staff has many activities planned for Friday and Saturday.

Lincoln Mission Mart is a nonprofit with 100 percent of the net proceeds going to fund programs for the homeless at Home Sweet Home Ministries, a Bloomington-based homeless shelter.

"The Lincoln Mission Mart has provided hundreds of thousands of dollars of vital support to the shelter at Home Sweet Home Ministries over the years," says Sabrina Burkiewicz, spokeswoman for Home Sweet Home Ministries. "We've been honored to help countless families and individuals in Logan County by providing things free of charge at the store or by providing shelter and other services at the shelter in Bloomington. We are so grateful to the Lincoln community for their unwavering commitment to supporting the Mission Mart. Many lives have been impacted through the efforts of this store and its customers."

Some interesting facts about the store's 16-year history in Lincoln:

• Since the store began keeping track, there have been approximately 284,400 customer transactions since 1998.

• The store has had two locations and has been in its current building about eight years.

• Merchandise from the Lincoln Mission Mart has ended up in countries like Africa, Mexico, China and others, thanks to the organization's commitment to donate supplies like clothes, books and shoes to local mission groups.

• With an average of two trips per week, the Home Sweet Home delivery truck has driven over 56,000 miles back forth to Lincoln from Bloomington since the store opened in 1994.

• The store sold $1,346.68 on its first day of business, June 27, 1994.

To celebrate the anniversary, the following events are planned: Friday, the first 75 customers in the store will receive a free gift. Also, free snacks will be served all day and five gift baskets will be given away. Saturday, the entire store's merchandise will be 50 percent off all day. The sale will begin at 9 a.m. and end at 6 p.m. on Saturday.

Lincoln Mission Mart is owned and operated by Home Sweet Home Ministries, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit interdenominational Christian organization serving homeless and low-income individuals and families in Bloomington through a variety of programs. Home Sweet Home provides numerous services 24 hours daily, 365 days a year.

[Text from file received from Home Sweet Home Ministries]