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| Community thrift store closes doors |
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| News - Spring Hill | |||
| Written by Chase Jordan | |||
| Wednesday, 11 February 2009 09:00 | |||
Robb and Erlinda Hand opened their store for people in need, but now they have to close their doors because of federal regulations. Robb started the SoZo Store with his wife, Erlinda, accidently about a year and a half ago. They had a few garage sales to raise money for a mission trip. He remembers during the garage sale, when he was selling children’s clothes for 25 cents, a woman asked if the clothing was only a quarter per item.“I said yes, and she started to get tears in her eyes, and she just said ‘thank you,’” he said. “That was really meaningful and left an impact, and we remembered that when we got back from our mission trip and decided to create a thrift store.” There were a lot of items left over from the garage sale. The SoZo Store is a nonprofit organization with five volunteers who do not receive payment. The store’s volunteers are Martin Holtsclaw, Jackie Mack, Kay Jordan, Deb Keller and Cheri Gardner. Gardner has mix feelings about the store closing. She has been volunteering her Saturday mornings for more than a year. “I know the store has helped a lot of people.” Gardner said. “I know that’s God in control.” The store located at 21901-A Victory Road was established as an outlet for the community. “Even in our relatively nice community, we still encounter tons of people that are in need and who are barely making it financially,” Robb said. Due to new federal regulations from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission regarding lead testing and lead products, the store will probably be closing soon. The lease for the building will expire in February. The CPSC recently passed a one year stay of enforcement for certain testing and certification for products intended for children 12 years old and younger. The requirements are part of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. “We couldn’t afford to test for it, the equipment costs tens of thousands of dollars,” he said. “Seriously, we don’t make any money at all. I put my own personal money into the store. It literally costs our family money to keep this going more than anything else.” Erlinda said the store has helped a lot of people, and she is blessed to meet people in the community. She said there was a time when people came in after a house fire, and the store was willing to help. Erlinda said the regulations were unfair. “I understand that they want to keep lead poisoning out of children, and I totally agree with that,” Erlinda said. “But these are used items, so they came through another retailer at some point. I think the retailer should be responsible for it.” SoZo said most of the clothing sold at the store is for children. Robb said there is a risk of selling items that have been recalled and getting hit with a $100,000 fine, something his family can not recover from financially. “We really enjoy serving the community, and we’ve helped so many families,” Robb said. “I’m just blessed to have been able to help them. It’s just one of those things where the government has made it hard for people.” The SoZo Store formed a partnership with the Spring Hill Multi-Service Center by providing vouchers for people in need. Stevie Morris, community social service manager, said the Civic Center had a closet that made clothes moldy and musty. About 36 families were served in January by the center. Morris said about one-third of the families needed some type of clothing. Morris said she does not feel good about the store closing. “That’s a big gap in our needs in Spring Hill,” Morris said. “There is a need in the community for inexpensive clothing for children and adults.” Janet McRae, economic development director for Miami County, said she is working on notifying stores similar to SoZo. She said the Spring Hill thrift store was a great resource in the community. “Anytime you place rules and constrictions, there are upsides and downsides,” McRae said. “There are more downsides in this case. It places a burden on great people who are trying to do great things.” The married couple lives in Spring Hill and have two children, Brianna, 15, and Bobby, 13. Robb is a youth and children’s pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Independence, Mo. For more information regarding CPSC regulations, visit www.cpsc.gov.
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Comments (1)
stewped: ...
This law does not apply to second hand stores. See the clarification from the CPSC at:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pr...9086.html It states: "Sellers of used children’s products, such as thrift stores and consignment stores, are not required to certify that those products meet the new lead limits, phthalates standard or new toy standards." 1
February 15, 2009
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