Toe-tappin' celebration

CASEY RESSLER

Frontiersman Valley Life editor

A few raindrops couldn't stop the block party in Palmer Wednesday afternoon, and it certainly wasn't going to stop Hobo Jim from taking the stage and bringing his Alaskana to the stage.

In a sense, the day was a perfect metaphor - it was Bishop's Attic II's 30th-anniversary celebration Wednesday, and through good times and bad, the thrift store has always been there for the community. Millions of dollars have been raised for local nonprofit agencies through the thrift store during the last 30 years, and a few raindrops weren't about to stop the celebration.

"Man, it's really raining out there," Hobo Jim joked from the covered stage. "But hey, we're Alaskans, right?"

While Hobo Jim strummed his guitar and sang his famous Iditarod song for one of the event's special guests, Vi Redington, Art Graveley flipped hot dogs on the grill and Kaitlyn Gratias painted the faces of young and old alike. All were there on their own time, on their own dime.

"Almost everything today was donated by the community," said Bishop's Attic II's new manager, Ann Cockrell. "Hobo Jim donated his time to play for us. All of the refreshments were donated. We've got over 30 door prizes that were donated. We're lucky to have the support of the community."

Cockrell's statement wasn't intended to be ironic, but it was - the community is lucky to have the support of Bishop's Attic II. The thrift store has many community outreach programs in place, from helping put clothes on people who lose their homess to fire to donations of hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to community organizations. In 2004, more than $200,000 was donated to 21 groups, with St. Michael's and Sacred Heart Catholic churches - the two founding churches of Bishop's Attic II - being the primary beneficiaries.

"All of our donations come in from the Valley, so we try to give most of the money back to Valley charities," Rose Scheibl, a member of the board of directors who was also the first-ever store manager at Bishop's Attic II, told the Frontiersman in January.

Regular Bishop's Attic II customers may notice a few changes in upcoming weeks, Cockrell said. She's trying to increase donations, and as a way of rewarding donors, she's offering a discount.

"If you make a donation during store hours, we're giving customers 20 percent off," Cockrell said. "And starting in September, Wednesday will be Seniors Day, with 20 percent off for seniors. Thursdays will be Military Day. People with military ID will get 20 percent off."

Cockrell is also modifying the clearance rack a bit - there will be items 50 percent off and some items for 50 cents, but the traditional rack is going away.

One thing that never changes, however, is the need for volunteers to help at the store.

"Yes, we're always looking for volunteers," Cockrell said. "Summer is a quiet time for us, but we still need volunteers to make it run."

For more information on how to volunteer, interested people can call Ann or Sonya at 745-4215.