THREE MONTHS AFTER FIRE, THRIFT STORE IN BUSINESS

Three months after being gutted by fire, the Teen Challenge Thrift Store is relocated and open for business.

Jack Smart, executive director of Teen Challenge International of Mid-America, said the store was reopened by auxiliary volunteers without fanfare on Oct. 13. Events will be scheduled in November to celebrate the store's new site at 117 N. Middle.

Auxiliary volunteers have operated the thrift store for about 10 years. Proceeds meet some needs of the Teen Challenge drug rehabilitation center.

"We opened quietly, and after we've gotten through the initial rush of people dropping things by we'll have a grand reopening," said Smart. "You would be amazed: It's just unbelievable how much stuff people have donated."

Many items stored in a dormitory addition at the rehabilitation center while a new site was sought are being transferred to the new store. Smart said the store's reopening hasn't been publicized because volunteers have been "swamped" since the original store burned.

A fast-moving fire in the store at 10 N. Sprigg July 15 destroyed the building. The fire was ruled accidental by investigators.

Although the new store has about twice the floor space of the original building, volunteers still are having difficulty finding space for all the donated items, Smart said.

"We appreciate it in one sense, but there's a physical limit to what you can take," he said. "We're just asking them to call first before bringing items."

Although no-smoking signs and fire extinguishers have been hung around the store to protect against a second fire, Smart said there is only so much volunteers can do. As was the case in the former location, the new store is housed in an older building that does not have a sprinkler system.

Even so, Smart is optimistic about the store's future. The thrift store operated for 10 years before the fire, and there is no reason to expect the worst, he said.

"It's just one of those things that we'll just have to keep a closer eye on," he said. "It's one of those things you don't ever expect is going to happen."