Palisadian Volunteer Readies UCLA Thrift Shop for Spring Event

By DAYNA DRUM | Reporter

In the early morning hours of April 9, people will be camped out on the sidewalk of Massachusetts Ave. and Sawtelle Blvd. to get an entrance ticket to the UCLA Thrift Shop’s Spring Event.

After months of storing up donated items of the highest quality and designer brands, the shop puts on a large fundraiser with the fresh merchandise attracting hundreds of people. The ticket numbers are passed out early in the day and only a limited number of people are allowed in at a time.

The inventory includes clothing, shoes, furniture and many other items. Among the brands that will be for sale are Manolo Blahnik, Tory Burch, Kate Spade and Brooks Brothers.

The proceeds of the event—held three times a year—benefit direct patient care and projects at UCLA Medical Center.

Store manager Patty Canalas explained that unlike larger thrift shops, the proceeds are donated directly to patient programs instead of being passed through different hands.

The 4,500 square-foot shop is run by 12 staff members and nine volunteers, including volunteer veteran Gudrun Marx.

The long-time Marquez Knolls resident has been volunteering at the shop for the past seven years and has been a board member of the UCLA Medical Auxiliary, while her husband was a surgeon at UCLA.

The thrift shop is run by the Auxiliary, which funds numerous programs such as Adopt-A-Family, sponsoring families in need during the holidays.

On a recent day when the Palisadian-Post visited the thrift shop, Marx hung up clothes that had been sorted in a large back room overflowing with donated items.

Marx explained that her favorite part of volunteering is the fashion that comes through the store and being able to help customers find outfits.

The shop isn’t lacking in any department. Sitting across the street is the Annex, which houses home décor, linens and children’s clothing. Oftentimes an entire house worth of items is donated after someone has died, Marx explained.

The shop’s employees pride themselves on being a high-end secondhand store with only the best offerings.

“You don’t have that mothball smell,” Kay Grigsby, assistant store manager, said of the shop’s atmosphere.

Any items with a blemish are sent to a third-world country, Marx expounded.

The store is located at 11271 Massachusetts Ave. and the Annex is at 1601 Sawtelle Blvd. The store will be open on Saturday, April 9 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and will continue throughout the month.

For more information, visit uclathriftstore.com.