There will be a garage sale in Red Deer this weekend in support of local animals.
The Central Alberta Humane Society Garage Sale fundraiser began with a VIP night Thursday and will be open to the public through the weekend at the old Co-op building (5102 47 Ave.) in downtown Red Deer. The sale will be open Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
With COVID-19, the society hasn’t been able to host an in-person garage sale the past couple of years.
“Last year we didn’t do one at all. In the first year (of the pandemic), we tried an online version that made maybe five per cent of what we typically make,” executive director Eve Sira said, adding the average garage sale raises $60,000.
Sira said it’s exciting to have the in-person garage sale back.
“Typically we would be planning for the garage sale since January, but (it’s different) this year with all the pivoting we’ve had to do,” said Sira.
“In January and February we had to make a decision and it looked like Alberta would still be heavily restricted (due to COVID-19). We were going to go ahead with a hybrid sale, where we would engage the community to host garage sales on their own, so we’d be able to do it with restrictions.”
When the restrictions were lifted, the society decided to host the garage sale. The location they had used in previous years, the Pidherney Centre, was unavailable, but they managed to book the old Co-op building.
“It all came together very fast. Within two months it was put together, which is logistically a lot for something of this size,” Sira said, adding Servus Credit Union pays rent for the building during the garage sale.
The past couple of years have been hard for not-for-profit organizations, Sira noted.
“Most of us aren’t government-funded, so it’s all by donation,” she said.
“People have been in such a tumultuous place the past few years as well. It is integral for all not-for-profits to be able to start going again.”
The volunteers who helped put the event together have been “astounding,” she said, adding there are other events this summer where people can support not-for-profit organizations, including the Whisker Rescue Garage Sale in July.
For more information on the Central Alberta Humane Society, visit www.cahumane.com.
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