No money needed to shop at Toledo church's free store

A rummage-worthy collection of odds and ends is set up next to the Toledo Museum of Art, inside Glenwood Lutheran Church.

At the far corner of the Change Sings mural on the back of the church, an open door welcomes all who wish to enter from 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Thursdays.

“It is basically a thrift store, but we don't handle any money,” said Alyx Kendzierski, the facilitator of the Sharing Collective Free Store. “There's no payment for anything. We just take donations, we sort through those donations, we try to clean things up as best as we can, make sure what we're putting out is useful and still in good condition.”

Folding tables with assortments of kitchenware, accessories, and small appliances stand next to clothing racks filled with items for newborns up through adult age.

“It's not a unique idea. It's not a new idea. There are plenty of other free stores,” Kendzierski said. “Our issue is that most of them are run by either churches or other organizations that put limits on things that people can take or they require documentation from folks.”

Organizations often require “either proof of income, proof of address, proof of residence, things like that, and from a mutual aid standpoint, that defeats the purpose,” they said.

Once upon a time, Glenwood Lutheran Church had its own “free store” back in 2021.

“We've had a giving store in the past that the congregation loved and was really excited about,” said Chris Hanley, pastor of Glenwood Lutheran Church, casually known as “Pastor Chris.”

Certain difficulties arose with the last attempt at a donation driven free store.

“So we also know the challenges,” Mr. Hanley said. “Like donations can pile up when there's not a a big team or a large network that the store is a part of.”

According to Mr. Hanley, items from the store found their way around the entirety of the church, and nuisances like bedbugs were a worry and a consideration for church leadership.

After the previous experience with a donation-driven store Glenwood Lutheran compromised to run the free store with a trial period attached. The board and the council will review the efficacy of the the Sharing Collective Free Store at the end of a six-month period.

“This is, I believe, only our second week of being up and running, not on a popup basis,” Kendzierski said. The store has worked as a popup for four years and only accepts donations on a case-by-case basis.

“We're trying out some some new strategies to avoid the pitfalls that they've experienced in the past, and Pastor Chris really believes in our philosophy of seeing one another as equals and trying to interact that way,” they said. “We think everyone deserves the dignity of not feeling like a charity case.”

Part of providing dignity to people who use the free store Kendzierski said was part of being selective with what donations are accepted. “We don't want to pass along someone else's trash to people,” they said.

Anyone is welcome to participate in the free store, and the kind of donations the store needs most are toiletries.

“When it comes to like house-wear, clothes, shoes, stuff like that, that's [accepted] case by case,” Kendzierski said. “But if anyone would ever like to donate anything from menstrual supplies, adult and child diapers, hair brushes, nail clippers, [baby] formula, stuff like that. We will always accept those kinds of things. ... That stuff goes fast. Very, very fast.”

Mr. Hanley shared a few positive stories about the free store already, including one example in which a grandmother who came in with her pregnant granddaughter. The elder walked out with a medical scooter, and the younger found some personal items.

Anecdotes like these fall under the vision Mr. Hanley has for the free store, and he gave some context, “There's a famous passage in Acts, Chapter 2, where those first followers of Jesus just share with one another.”

“They just commit to sharing with one another,” he said.

Mr. Hanley sees the free store as an opportunity to show “Jesus’ neighborly love.”

“So we're all learning to be a neighbor,” he said in his office, where a book bearing the name and image of Mister Rogers stood out.

When asked what it means to be a good neighbor Mr. Hanley said, “Being kind is a start. Listening to the person in front of you and figuring out how we can be neighbors together.”

Ultimately, he said, “It's figuring out how to share a neighborhood.”

Kendzierski runs and organizes the store with help from volunteers but hopes the store will grow sustainably, becoming an effective resource for everyone to use.

Thursday, Corbin Mendez entered with a number of items to donate, and said, “There's a lot more stuff than I would have anticipated.” As he looked around the church’s gym he found a small cast iron skillet he was charmed to walk out with, no tender required.