By: Rowan Frederiksen
Rusty the taxidermy dog
In 1955, parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities got together and started The Arc chapters of Colorado. Over a decade later, these chapters created arcThrift Stores as a fundraising entity for the local Arc chapters. Today, 50 years later, the 27 thrift store locations help support the mission of the 14 Chapters of The Arc
ArcThrift is known for its great deals and super low prices. They also have a great selection of some of the finer things, like Rusty the taxidermy dog (pictured at right) or that creepy doll you asked your grandma to get rid of.
Maggie Scivicque, the Marketing Director of arcThrift, promotes and advertises the kitchy things you find in each store. “I love my job. I cannot believe that I get to advertise these weird things. It just makes it that much more exciting,” said Maggie. Maggie gets to see all of the items that are donated to each thrift store/pick-up location and enjoys sorting through all of the donations. Her job is to then make these items look appealing to the general public and market them at low arcThrift prices.
In a recent interview, Maggie mentioned that “[She’s] bummed that people don’t know what The Arc does. People mainly shop at the thrift stores for the low, affordable prices. I personally want to believe they shop for the mission.” Maggie focuses on advertising the products in the best way possible, so that it draws people to the store. This way, people buy things and support the mission without even knowing they support the mission. “I try to find a healthy balance with the mission and raising funds,” stated Maggie.
“Everyone in some way is connected to the The Arc, whether it’s with donations, shopping, work, etc. If that connection didn’t exist, we probably wouldn’t be around,” said Maggie.
So, next time you donate or shop at arcThrift, know that you are supporting the local chapters of The Arc. Without people like you and Maggie, the services and programs provided by The Arc chapters of Colorado would not be possible.
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