Two Grand Marais thrift stores give substantial annual donations to local non-profits

Two Grand Marais second-hand stores recently announced their annual contributions to area non-profits.

WTIP’s Chuck Olsen spoke with Oddz & Endz board member Dale McIntire and board president Ann Marie Mershon of First and Second Thrift Store about their mission to keep reusable items out of landfills and benefit community organizations in the process.

“This year, we had a banner year in a lot of ways,” says McIntire . “Last year, in 2022 we had a payout of about $80,000 back into 21 different non-profits in the community. This year we were able to distribute that support to 27 non-profits for a total of $110,000.” 

Mershon shared a cumulative fundraising milestone for First and Second Thrift Store. “We just broke $1 million dollars! We’ve given away over a million dollars since the store opened in 2007,” says Mershon.

The volunteers of both organizations allocate funds to local non-profits chosen by their volunteers based upon the number of hours worked. 

Audio of the interviews can be found below.

Chuck Olsen February 13, 2024