JERRY PERSON -- A Look Back

o7 “To the warmth, understanding and unity of purpose -- we dedicate

this room to those who give and to those who receive.”f7

These words were spoken at the dedication of the Assistance League of

Huntington Beach’s new thrift store on Feb. 19, 1954.

In 1941, several women organized a local branch of the Assistance

League of Orange County. At first, the league operated its thrift shop in

various locations, with the first one in Orange County. In 1946, the

league bought a small store, which was sold in 1952 because the league

needed larger quarters.

So they began looking around for a new site that would serve their

needs. The league received a $5,000 grant from the Irvine Foundation in

1952, and Huntington Beach’s then-Mayor Marcus M. McCallen gave the

league $200 to start the building fund. The league hosted teas, style

shows, rummage sales and even had a booth in a carnival to raise funds.

A site was selected at 301 Walnut Ave., and a building committee was

formed, which consisted of Dorothy Terry, as the chairwoman; Ila Dabney;

Ruth Robertson; Katherine Kettler; and Hazel Whittaker.

In October 1953, work began on the new building. As construction

progressed, a fixture committee was organized, which consisted of Gussie

Kettler, as the chairwoman; Helen Crosby; Jimmie Overmyer; Glen Farquhar;

Margaret Elloitt; Bertha Tovatt; and Mary Hopkins.

The thrift store was formally dedicated Feb. 19, 1954, by the league

president, Florence B. Tunis.

The league held its June 1954 meeting at Lake Park Clubhouse, and Mrs.

Jack Colvin was named president. By February 1955, a year after opening

the thrift store, the Assistance League was able to pay off its mortgage

with money obtained from an oil well drilling lease between the league

and Pacific Drilling Co.

The league was the only one to boast of having its own oil well. The

Long Beach drilling company used slant drilling under the league’s

property, and that well produced 1,140 barrels of oil a day. The thrift

shop was relocated to 226 Main St. in the 1970s, and the old store on

Walnut Avenue served as the league’s offices until it was sold in the

early 1980s.

The thrift moved to Gothard Street and Heil Avenue and was called the

Bargain Box.

Today, the Bargain Box thrift shop is at 8071 Slater Ave. Throughout

the years of service to the community, the league has kept the motto of

“Service for all and all for service.” * JERRY PERSON is a local

historian and longtime Huntington Beach resident. If you have ideas for

future columns, write him at P.O. Box 7182, Huntington Beach, CA 92615.