Since opening its doors last September, the op shop, run purely by volunteers, is sticking to its word about giving back to the community.

On Tuesday, January 8 the Gloucester Breast Cancer Support Group and the Gloucester Croquet Club were the most recent beneficiaries of this circular donation concept.

The whole idea behind the shop is to take donations of goods from the community, like unwanted or unused clothes, toys and kitchenware, sell them to people who need them, then give the profits to community organisations. The first donations rolled out in November, with Gloucester Scouts, Gloucester Prostate Cancer, Gloucester Junior Hockey and June's Place’s Christmas Dinner receiving funds.

Community groups are encouraged to simply drop off a letter outlining what they need money for and the committee will make a decision about the donation. The whole process is very quick, sometimes was within a day or two of dropping off the request. 

For the breast cancer group, the $500 donation will go directly to the four Gloucester women who are currently undergoing cancer treatment to help support them and their families, while the croquet club will use its funds toward purchasing new stainless steel hoops. At the moment, the ones they have need to be repainted every couple of years and given the club hosts around six regional competition a year, the investment in new equipment is vital to the club’s continued success.

The Gloucester Community Shop’s volunteers all agree that the store has been very successful since opening its doors.

“It’s beyond all our expectations,” Cedric Salter said. “I’d like to thank all the donors for the quality stuff and extend a thank you to Joan Bithrey for allowing us the use of her garage to store our surplus.”

The shop continually receives donated goods, but it’s the volunteers who are the foundation of the shop, to which the committee is very thankful. Located at 41 King Street, the shop is open Tuesday to Friday from 8am to 2pm and Saturday from 9am until noon, with donations accepted during business hours.

The Gloucester Breast Cancer Support Group will meet for its annual general meeting on February 4 from 2pm at the Gloucester Senior Citizens Centre, 30 Hume Street. 

The Gloucester Croquet Club, located in Gloucester District Park, will host a fun and games afternoon on Australia Day, January 26 from 4pm for anyone who wants to come and give it a try.