By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Driven by the desire to find deals and the uncanny ability to carry mass quantities, bargain hunters maneuvered their way through the treasure trove at the Wood County Fairgrounds Thursday morning.
The annual garage sale for the Wood County Humane Society offered bargains on everything from sofas and saucepans, to clothes and Christmas decorations.
For the first time, the garage sale was spread out in two buildings – under the grandstand in the Home & Garden building.
As usual, it did not disappoint.
By mid-morning Holly Horn and her mom, Linda Frizzell, both from Bowling Green, had already purchased their first load and were back for more. An office chair, mechanics cart and lamps had already been loaded in the car. In their arms were clothes, fabrics to turn into blankets, and some depression glass corn on the cob dishes that matched a set Frizzell already had at home.
“This allows me to get my fix” of garage sales for the year, Horn said.
The only problem was their car was getting full.
“I’m going to carry these on my lap,” Frizzell said of their latest finds.
The humane society garage sale is a family tradition for some – specifically for moms and daughters seeking treasures.
Melissa Lammers and her mom came from Curtice for the sale – with nothing in particular on their shopping list.
“Whatever catches my eye,” Lammers said.
So far that included a food dehydrator and a glass that had cocktail recipes on the side – giving ingredients for everything from martinis to Manhattans.
There was a whole area dedicated to beautifying items – like an electronic manicure tool and a fingernail dryer with a cosmetics organizer. There was hair regrowth treatment and curling irons – and if those failed, there were a few wigs.
The selection of kitchen items ranged from cookie cutters and canning supplies to coffee pots and crockpots.
Zach Smith, from Findlay, found two items he couldn’t resist – a radio and a frozen dessert maker that he planned to use for smoothies.
“I found it and thought, that’s cool. Then I saw it’s $3 – that’s really cool,” Smith said.
There was a vast array of glass figurines – everything from a toad in a top hat and a pig with wings, to a couple of cuddling orangutans.
Lorraine Miners, of Bowling Green, had just started her shopping.
“I like to see what they have. I always find something,” she said, recalling past purchases of picture frames and a ring tree.
Miners not only buys items at the garage sale – she often donates items as well.
“It’s a nice place to donate things because they get new homes,” she said – even the bowling pin ashtray she donated one year.
Some items don’t get too far from home, she added.
“One year I donated a clock and my sister bought it,” she said with a grin.
For the more athletic shoppers, there were skateboards, baseball mitts, yoga mats and pool floats. If something were to go awry, there were also crutches and a luxury bath spa.
Betty and Ed Kern, of Portage, were shopping for a specific item.
“I’m looking for tea pots with broken lids,” so she could plant African violets in them, Betty Kern said.
Though tempted, the couple was trying to not go home with many new treasures.
“This is the biggest sale I’ve ever seen,” Ed said.
“When you’re married 68 – or 69 – years, your house is pretty full,” Betty said.
Len and Sandra Lepper also came with a narrow shopping list. Every year they stock up on jigsaw puzzles at the humane society garage sale.
Len had a stack of nine 1,000-piece puzzles in his arms.
‘These go to the car, then we start looking again,” he said.
There were games and globes, crafts and clothes. There were strollers and suitcases, old turntables and toasters. There were jumper cables and jewelry, blenders and bikes.
And of course, since it’s a humane society event, there were elevated pet beds, food bowls, toys and pet clothing.
Cindy Grey, of Perrysburg, came to the sale with an open mind.
“I just came looking for treasure,” she said.
Then her cell phone started ringing.
“That’s my daughter. I just texted her that the sale was in two buildings,” she said, then answered her phone.
“It’s too overstimulating. It’s too overwhelming,” she told her daughter.
That’s what Joe Schroeder, the volunteer coordinating the garage sale, likes to hear. After canceling the sale last year due to COVID, the organization went ahead with plans to stretch it between two buildings.
“We had started talking three years ago about expanding,” Schroeder said.
And since the donation-driven sale didn’t take place last year, that meant there was much more to sell this year.
“We had two years of donations,” he said. “They remembered to save it for us.”
During the initial day of accepting donated items, 40 cars dropped off stuff in the first 15 minutes, “and they didn’t stop,” he said.
The amount of clothing donated this year was so great that it became dubbed “Mt. St. Clothing,” he added.
A total of 1,875 volunteer hours have gone into this year’s sale, Schroeder said. Two years ago, the event raised $19,300 for the humane society. The goal for this year is $22,000.
The garage sale will continue Friday from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
