Cancer society thrift store is tops in sales
Noaki Schwartz
CORONA DEL MAR -- When Dottie Hill’s only sister got lung cancer
nine years ago, she was devastated.
“I used to push her baby carriage,” recalled Hill, 82.
At the age of 67, Hill’s sister mysteriously began to have trouble
breathing and was unusually tired. Even so, cancer seemed unlikely. After
all, she wasn’t a smoker and no one in the family had had cancer. But the
curling smoke from her husband’s two-pack a day habit had seeped
unnoticed into her lungs.
“Shortly after, I began volunteering at the Discovery Shop [in Corona
del Mar],” said Hill, adding that joining the fight against cancer has
become part of her life’s mission.
There are hundreds of these American Cancer Society thrift shops across
the nation and more than 50 in Southern California. But none of them
compares to Corona del Mar’s: Two weeks ago, the shop was recognized for
selling more than any other in the nation.
“We’re very fortunate in that when there is a death with cancer, the
estate is assigned to us,” Hill said. “We have wonderful donations.”
All of the profits from barely used upscale items go to the American
Cancer Society for research. Most of the donated items come from families
who have lost a beloved mother, sister or grandfather to the disease.
The shop currently features a baby grand piano for $5,000, fur coats
for $350 to $3,000 and Chanel and Christian Dior evening gowns for $95 to
$325.
Clothing companies and bankrupt businesses also give items to the
Discovery Shop. Recently, a ceiling fan store that was going out of
business donated a number of fans in unopened boxes.
As for Hill, she continues to volunteer at the Corona del Mar branch
every Saturday as she has done for the last nine years. She continues to
be close to her sister, who lives only a block away. Though her sister
lost a lung to the disease, she is now cancer-free and, most importantly,
alive.
* WHAT: DISCOVERY SHOP
* WHERE: 2600 E. Coast Highway
* CONTACT: (949) 640-4777
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