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Annual sale aids animals; continues today
By ELISE McKEOWN SKOLNICK
CANFIELD
Bargain hunters filled Canfield Fairgrounds for the 21st annual Angels for Animals Garage Sale.
Items, including appliances, household and kitchen items, exercise equipment, sporting goods, clothing and antiques, filled four buildings.
Everything is donated, said Diane Less, founder of Angels for Animals. And that includes the event-workers’ time.
The organization, which works to educate the public and pet owners on responsible animal guardianship and the importance of spaying and neutering, had its first garage sale in a home garage — and raised $600.
“We thought, this is pretty good,” Less said.
The annual sale has grown, last year grossing $106,000, which is about 9 percent of the organizations $1.2 million annual budget. It’s their largest fundraiser of the year.
“This is a monumental effort,” Less said.
But, she added, “What else could we do to raise that much money in 10 days?”
The first few days are set-up; donation collection is three days; and the actual sale is three days.
Buyers pay $5 for the privilege of shopping first on Friday. This year, 1,108 people took advantage of that offer. Admission on Saturday was $1, and today it is free.
Jen O’Hara of Austintown and her daughter, Elizabeth, 18, were looking for a specific item Saturday. Elizabeth is graduating from high school this year, and her mom wanted a very large frame to hold a collage
of photos, but she didn’t want to pay a lot.
They scored two for $12 each.
“I think it’s nice that we’re paying less for something we would pay a lot more for [in a store],” Elizabeth said.
“Plus, we’re helping the animals,” Jen said.
On the other hand, Suzanne LaRocca of Canfield and her son, Marco, 10, weren’t looking for anything in particular. They were attending the garage sale for the first time.
“We had a friend tell us about the great deals out here,” Suzanne said. “And we figured we could help some animals, too.”
Suzanne filled a large bag with clothes, and Marco, a drummer, was excited to find a pair of drumsticks, and a DVD of “The Andy Griffith Show.” They also purchased some books.
“It was definitely worth our time,” Marco said. “We’re going to start doing it every year.”
The event continues from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today.