OTHER FREE STORES
Inspired by Free Stores in Braddock and Wilkinsburg, past and present Penn Hills residents decided to start a store of their own. Their goal is to eradicate poverty...one donation and one workshop at a time.
So on Saturday, November 19th, Tamara Cox, Janica M. Estes, Heather Hopson, Deborah McKenzie and Fawn Washington opened the doors to Free Store Penn Hills, a consignment store minus the price tags for neighbors in need.
Free Store Penn Hills is located on the second floor of the Lincoln Park Community Center. The store is open Mondays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and welcomes shoppers and donors from across Allegheny County.
Shoppers, including children, teens and adults, can "purchase" ten items to take home. (They pay with smiles and hugs!) Flash "Sales" are also held throughout the year to snag additional things.
A resource table is also a fixture in Free Store Penn Hills, providing valuable and timely information to the public. Resource partners include Allegheny County Library Association, Allegheny Family Network, Arts Education Collaborative, Consumer Health Coalition, Cribs for Kids, Gems from Joy Ministries, Family Resources, Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council, PNC Grow Up Great, Pittsburgh Action Against Rape (PAAR), Pittsburgh Association for the Education of Young Children (PAEYC), Reading is Fundamental (RIF), Ready Freddy, University of Pittsburgh’s Office of Child Development, UPMC and more.
Additional partners include At Home, Denny’s, Guardian Storage, Simmie’s Restaurant and Swade Welding. Thanks to a donation from Pastor Robert James of Mount Ararat Baptist Church, local artists JaQuay Walker Taylor and Deborah McKenzie created interactive murals.
Currently, the store is in need of toiletries, toys and volunteers. Email FreeStorePennHills@gmail.com or call 412.539.6892 to see how you can get involved!
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