Places to Find and Donate items!!

[ecpblue]

Mysstica had mentioned knowing a wonderful place to donate items and it got me thinking as well- where are some places people know of to donate toys and other items as well as places that they can be found? I understand people on here are located all over the world but it may help when someone travels and who knows maybe you live close to someone else!?!?! 

In the US Habitat for Humanity has thrift type stores in almost every state!  I actually do some volunteer work for them.  Their stores are called "ReStore" and you can donate all kinds of items there and they have a HUGE variety of things to buy!!  They are open 6 days a week and get new items in every day!  I found an amazing tree house for dolls or figures for $5 and then found it online for $300!!  I suggest you check these out if you haven't already!!

Are there other great places that people know of??

[Mysstica]

I went to our Habitat for Humanity store for the first time very recently. There weren't many toys at ours, mostly knick-knacks and furniture.

We have a Good Samaritan's here that has clothing, books, furniture, toys, cassettes, electronics, etc.

We also have a local store here that is run by volunteers whose proceeds go towards helping pets. (I believe helping in getting them spade and neutered, but I'm not positive. Our animal shelter was closed down recently - IMAGINE THAT!!! - so I'd imagine that it has a hand in helping that situation as well.) The store is called Paws... or something like that.

We have something called Threads of Hope, which helps the House of Hope, which helps (among other things, I believe) children who have been taken from their homes because there were Meth labs in their houses. Saddest stuff ever.

There is a Good Will store pretty close, but it is mostly clothing.

[invaderhorizongreen]

all i have close to me is volunteers of America and the salvation army.  I wish we had a good will closer to us or a habitat for humanity i would have soo much stuff to donate!

[Sora]

All we have here is Salvation Army and Good Will ):

[TheMinorityof1990]

If you're in England, there's charity shops, bootfairs and jumble sales.

Charity shops have bags u can take home, fill and then donate. Sometimes the bags are brought to u and u fill it n leave it on the path outside to have it collected on a certain day.

[MissAliRae]

The best place I have found to find lots of toys for cheap are Goodwill Outlets. They seem to be increasing in number so that's good! You pay by the pound, and there are often (at least at the ones I've visited) lots of toys and stuffed animals. In some places they are not separated out from the clothes and other stuff, and they are usually mixed in with other "household" items.

It's funny how much Goodwill's vary. The ones near my parents house in IA seem to have a fairly decent selection of toys and plush, while most of the ones near me in NC have very few. Then again when I travel to a different region of NC, in a different Goodwill area, they have a better toy selection.

Smaller shops sometimes are better for ~rare finds because they get less traffic and so things are less likely to get snatched up. However I will say I generally find more popular stores work better because they have a much higher incoming volume and turn over.

Salvation Army seems to consistently lack a lot of toys, but occasionally some of the ones I go to have good stuff. I found a Wonder Whim and vintage Beethoven plush there. I think it's all about the area really.