Any frequent thrift shopper knows the thrill of discovering a hidden treasure among heaps of discarded curtains, sweaters and VHS tapes.
Whidbey Island non-profit thrift stores are banding together for the first annual Whidbey Island Treasure Hunt Friday, Aug. 8 and Saturday, Aug. 9 to raise money for their respective organizations and granting thrifty shoppers a chance to have some fun and discover oddities, antiques, collectibles and simple good deals.
Kathy McCabe, executive director of the Good Cheer Food Bank, has been trying to organize a treasure hunt for some time and began actively working towards this year’s event last year by making a map of the 12 non-profit Whidbey thrift stores for distribution online and in stores.
This year, her goal to bring dozens of residents and visitors together for “the world’s longest island treasure hunt” is finally becoming a reality. Shawn Nowlin, Good Cheer’s community outreach coordinator, explained that the idea of the treasure hunt is primarily to have fun. But she said it is also a good opportunity for people to receive some deals on quality merchandise, quality which is oftentimes distinctive to Whidbey.
With several residents moving to the island post-retirement, downsizing is common, Nowlin said. The thrift stores are frequent beneficiaries, meaning items such as once-expensive antiques and designer clothes end up on the rack, sometimes for as little as $3, according to Nowlin.
Nowlin added that many Whidbey artists’ works end up in thrift stores, signaling their success in the community and the fact that their work was bought, loved and passed on, giving another admirer the chance to own a piece.
According to Nowlin, works like these and several others will be available for sale during the hunt.
She also said it is an opportunity for the organizations to cooperate and work together to make the thrift stores of Whidbey more of a destination rather than a side note.
Treasure hunt participants will receive a button at each of the stores visited, each button representing the chance to enter a drawing to win a prize.
Shoppers who visit all 12 locations will earn the chance to enter and win the grand prize, a one-night stay at a Whidbey hotel.
Button submissions are due by the end of the hunt Sunday at 4 p.m., and the drawing will take place the following Tuesday, Aug. 12.
The 12 thrift stores included in the hunt are Good Cheer, located in Langley and Clinton; Whidbey Animals’ Improvement Foundation, Freeland and Oak Harbor; BaRC Retail, Coupeville; Community Thrift, Freeland; Habitat for Humanity, Oak Harbor and Freeland; New Beginnings Thriftique, Coupeville; My Father’s House Community Thrift Store, Island Thrift and Upscale Resale, Oak Harbor.
In addition to the buttons, each store will hold its own sale. For Good Cheer, this will likely mean 25 percent off all store merchandise.
All of the sales benefit local nonprofits, with proceeds being donated to families and animals in need.
The thrift stores have a challenge to complete as well. Each location was instructed to “up-cycle” an item which has been donated to the shop. Corrine Rouse-Kay, manager of the Freeland Habitat for Humanity thrift store, explained that this means they must improve something donated. The items each store is up-cycling are kept secret until the hunt begins. Thrift shoppers will vote on the up-cycled items with donations. The store with the most donations will win.
Up-cycling is a fairly common practice amongst thrift shoppers and thrift store workers, Rouse-Kay said, explaining that when Freeland Lanes closed down, a resident made a table of the lanes and donated it to the store.
“The most important thing for us is to have people come and experience our stores, have fun and see what quality thrift stores we have,” said Nowlin.
For details, visit whidbey
islandtreasurehunt.com.
