LAYTON — Easter Seals-Goodwill is branching out from Salt Lake City and opening a new store in Layton on July 16.
But the Easter Seals-Goodwill store at 1010 W. Hill Field Road will not be the only thrift store on the block.
The new store is a minute away from Deseret Industries and about seven minutes from Savers Thrift Store, creating a "thrift store row," said Lee Manwaring, the assistant president of Easter Seals-Goodwill Northern Rocky Mountains.
Though the stores all sell donated goods for lower prices, the programs they support are different.
"The way I see it when it comes to nonprofit thrift stores is that we all fill different voids in the community," said Chelle Feist, a community relations officer at Easter Seals-Goodwill. "Because when you look at all of them and the programs they offer, they are all just a little different and unique. But between all of us, when you add us all together, we fulfill the needs in the community."
Both Deseret Industries and Easter Seals-Goodwill are nonprofits that work with different programs to help those in the community.
Ninety-seven percent of the revenue from the donations sold at the Layton Easter Seals-Goodwill will go to community-based programs, including autism programs such as the Play and Language for Autistic Youngsters Project. As part of that program, autism specialists assist parents while they work to promote communication, social skills and relationships through play.
"A lot of people think you have to get the child to change," Feist said. "A lot of it is just understanding how the child works. And by bringing the parents into the child's world, the social skills these children gain is unbelievable."
Easter Seals-Goodwill also collaborates with the Senior Community Service Employment Program. This program employs seniors older than 55 with local non-profits or government agencies.
"Think about a couple who is married and the wife has never worked and the husband passes away and she doesn't have any job experience," Feist said. "So we come in and help people get job experience."
Up the street at 930 W. Hill Field Road, the Layton Deseret Industries also works to help the unemployed.
The Deseret Industries Business Partnership Program collaborates with local businesses to provide training for store associates. After receiving a referral from an associate's LDS bishop, Deseret Industries pays the wages, liability and workers compensation of an associate training at a local business.
In return, the associate receives job skills in their field of interest and pay. The business receives an employee they are not obligated to hire, though they sometimes do, said Jessica Saari, development counselor for Deseret Industries. The nonprofit thrift stores and vocational rehabilitation facilities are owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
"In a world where there's always a catch, this just seems too good to be true," Saari said.
Any business can join the program. Saari said she has seen associates become certified nursing assistants while working at Deseret Industries. Those associates then gained experience while training at the Layton Apple Village Assistant Living through the partnership program.
Marcie Valdez, the northern Utah director of Catholic Community Services, said while it is odd that nonprofit thrift stores are so close to each other, the proximity of the stores will provide different opportunities for the Layton community.
"It seems like a win-win all around," Valdez said. "It provides incredible opportunities in people learning new job skills."
Email: klarsen@deseretnews.com