It’s Just Coffee

You’ve probably seen ads for a local matchmaking service called “It’s Just Lunch.” Prospective matches meet for lunch at a local restaurant and hopefully, get to know each other enough to see if they’d like to go on another date. It’s informal, convenient, inexpensive, and doesn’t take up the whole day – it’s just lunch!

ALI would like to be matched up with some new people, too! We KNOW there are many of you out there who would love to get to know us better and perhaps join our chapter. To keep things even simpler than a lunch date, we’re sponsoring “COFFEE AND A TOUR” on Saturday, March 7.

JOIN US AT 10 AM at our Community Outreach Center/Thrift Shop, 2452 Alton Parkway in Irvine (between Von Karman and Jamboree) for coffee and a presentation about our philanthropic activities. Learn how Assistance League of Irvine turns second-hand treasures from our Thrift & Gift Shop into community giving, through scholarships, clothing and school supplies for Irvine students, and much, much more. You’ll have a chance to meet some of our members, enjoy a delicious cup of coffee, take a tour of our Thrift Shop, and even do some shopping!

For more information, RSVP by March 1 to: 949-798-5020, or email: membership@irvine.assistanceleague.org. We’ll see you then – and bring a friend!

February 14th is around the corner. Shop with us!

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the greeting card aisle, the calendar strikes again. It’s Valentine’s Day! Well, not quite, but it’s on the way.

Now we know all of you headed over to the cell phone store at the end of December so you could trade in your phone before the free upgrade expired. We also know that 97% of you have yet to download the instruction manual for your new phone, and thus have NO IDEA how to program a reminder to buy a Valentine gift for your significant other into your phone.

You have two options before February 14:

– Download the manual, which will appear in teeny tiny print on your cell phone screen. Since you can only read one paragraph at a time when you enlarge the text enough to be visible, it’ll take you 5,294 hours to go through it.

– Go to the Assistance League of Irvine’s Thrift Shop RIGHT NOW and pick out all your Valentine gifts from our selection of incredible bargains. We have jewelry, crystal, china, silver, and picture frames. For the kids, we have a whole menagerie of Valentine-themed stuffed animals. We have the ever-popular DVDs, CDs, and books. And if a special Valentine’s Day dinner or party is in your future, we’ve got the clothes.

See how easy a holiday can be? Now pull out that new phone and start making Valentine’s Day plans!

OUR VISION OF IRVINE’S FUTURE

Every organization has a vision of what they want to accomplish, and Assistance League of Irvine is no exception. Since you’re reading this blog, you’ve probably shopped at our thrift store and know something about our programs. But you probably (unless you’re a member!) don’t know our actual Vision Statement, which defines and explains our goals. It is:

“Assistance League of Irvine envisions a community where all individuals and families are empowered to achieve their full potential through access to education, the arts, and human services.”

Those words “access to education” led to ALI’s newest philanthropic program: Prep for Success. We’re partnering with Comprehensive College Prep in Laguna Hills to offer at least 20 need-based scholarships to high school juniors in the Irvine Unified School District who need financial help to pay for SAT/ACT test prep classes.

Most four-year colleges and universities require SAT or ACT test scores as part of their application. In recent years, as college admissions have become more competitive, “test prep” classes have become routine for families who can afford them. These classes familiarize the student with the type of questions on the tests, and let them take practice exams.   A student who has taken a “test prep” class is likely to do better on the SAT or ACT, and in the world of college admissions, a higher score helps. Perhaps the most important point is that students who take these classes start to think of themselves as college-bound. For students whose families have significant financial hardship or are the first in their family to go to college, “test prep” classes put them in a group of peers who see college as a desirable, and achievable, goal.

“We want to level the playing field for all students in the Irvine Unified School District by helping them to better prepare themselves for admission to a four-year college or university,” explains Dr. Annelle Arthur, ALI’s Vice President of Philanthropy.

So when you next visit our thrift shop, remember that YOU’RE helping us to create this new program – and to make our vision of the future a reality!

California Dreamin’ – Thrift Shop Road Trip

If you drove by the thrift shop a couple of Mondays ago and saw a group of ALI volunteers in their blue aprons clustered around a red Thunderbird convertible in front of the shop, you weren’t California Dreamin’. That was a visit from National Assistance League’s Anne Salenger, and her “Thrift Shop Road Trip.”

Anne is traveling around the country, visiting and blogging about different Assistance League thrift stores. We were thrilled to have Anne join us for one of our Monday behind-the-scenes work sessions. Our shop was filled with eager ALI volunteers sorting, cleaning, and changing out the merchandise for the coming week. Anne’s visit came just after our Holiday Extravaganza, so the shop looked especially festive with all our holiday items. Anne was able to see first-hand the incredible effort that goes into getting the shop ready to open for the week each Wednesday morning.

While everything ALI does is for our own community, it’s inspiring for us to be able to share our story with other chapters – and to learn from them as well. We hope Anne and her “Road Trip” come back soon for another visit!

Small Business Saturday is Coming!

SAVE THE DATE FOR SOME…

Mark this date on your calendar! Saturday, November 29 (that’s the Saturday after Thanksgiving) is Small Business Saturday. It’s going to be a fantastic day at the ALI Thrift Shop, and you won’t want to miss out. This special once-a-year event will feature:

– Prices so low, no layaway plan is needed!

– Free giveaways to adult shoppers through random drawings – no purchase required! We’ll have lots of great prizes, including Starbucks gift items from the Starbucks at Alton Square, and gourmet sauces from Sola Jams.

– Free face-painting & balloon animals for kids (parent must be present) by our  Assisteen volunteers, from 1 pm to 3 pm.

  – Our popular Mystery Discount off your entire bill! Pick a token from the Mystery Discount Jar after your items are totaled at the register. Whatever number you pick, we’ll give you that percentage off your entire purchase.

– Small Business Saturday was started in 2010 as a way to draw attention to Main Street businesses. These businesses create jobs and tie the community together. They’re staffed (like our thrift shop) by your friends and neighbors. And they’re often the first to respond when there’s a need for help in the community, because they’re part of its daily life.You’ll have Black Friday to visit the national chain stores.

Save Small Business Saturday for the ALI thrift shop! You will be dancing down the aisles happy!

YOUR THRIFT SHOP DOLLARS AT WORK!

Author Marta Mahoney,  Assistance League of Irvine Member

All you faithful thrift shoppers have been buying up a storm! We know what you’ve been doing with all those tops, pants, housewares, and toys you’ve been buying. But we thought YOU’D like to know what WE’VE been doing with the money from our thrift shop sales over the past couple of months.

We’ve been spending your dollars on our annual “Operation School Bell” philanthropy, which kicks off at the start of every school year. (You may have been at the shop during one of our OSB “Meet & Greets,” and seen families with exuberant school-age kids heading upstairs to our 2nd floor community resource center to meet with our OSB committee.) Operation School Bell provides school clothing and school supplies to low-income students in the Irvine Unified School District, from pre-K through 12th grade. We’ve been helping qualified IUSD students through OSB since 1990.

Every child is allocated a set amount of money to purchase school clothing, on a sliding scale from $75 to $125 depending on grade level. Families come to a “shopping event” at our partner retail store, Target North on Jamboree and Irvine Blvd., to pick out their clothing, and ALI pays Target when they check out. Target provides us with an additional 5% off every transaction for using our Target Redcard, and also extends us a tax exempt status discount.

At the introductory “Meet & Greet,” each student gets a backpack, school supplies, a set of personal care items, and an age-appropriate book to take home. Each family with school-age kids receives a dictionary, and our littlest pre-K people get to pick out a stuffed animal. We also provide parents with information on other resources for low-income families, such as vision care, dental care, the 211 resource guide, and our own scholarships for Irvine Valley College and SAT test prep for high-school students. And we give each family member a $5 gift card to our thrift shop – because everyone should have something new and fun from the thrift store for back-to-school!

NOW FOR THOSE STATISTICS – YOUR SHOPPING DOLLARS AT WORK!

We’ve clothed 662 children since August, when the year-round schools started. All the money for these 662 kids came from YOUR thrift shop purchases. Shoppers, that’s a lot of $5 tops and pants! We appreciate every one of you who supports our shop and helps us get these students ready for a successful school year.

OUR OWN BLUE-LIGHT SPECIALS!

Author Marta Mahoney,  Assistance League of Irvine Member

No, we’re not K-Mart – but if any of the following apply on the day you’re shopping, you’ll get a special discount off your purchase!

1. It’s your BIRTHDAY! Join our BIRTHDAY CLUB, and you’ll receive an in-store coupon good for 15% off your entire purchase, which can be used on any one day of your birthday month! You can sign up at the thrift store during regular business hours – just ask one of the ALI volunteers. Be sure to sign up early as it takes us about a month to process your membership.
2. You’re a SENIOR CITIZEN! Seniors age 65 and over get a discount of 25% on their total purchase, on the 3rd Thursday of every month! All you need to do is shop on the 3rd Thursday and show us your I.D.
3. You’re shopping on ANY THURSDAY! Every Thursday is “Mystery Discount” day! After your purchases are totaled, you can pick a token from our “Mystery Discount” cup. Whatever is on your token – 10%, 25%, etc. – is taken off your bill! (This can’t be combined with the “Senior discount,” however – it’s one or the other.)
4. You follow us on YELP, using the YELP app on your smartphone. You can receive a $2 coupon to use on any minimum purchase of $5 or more, when you “check in” to our thrift shop with the YELP app.   (This app searches for businesses in the area based on your location, and tracks and posts your activity to a social media site of your choosing, such as Facebook or Twitter.)

YELP will then send you an electronic coupon! The coupon is delivered to your smartphone immediately and can either be used on the same day, or saved for your next trip to the thrift shop. But it can’t be transferred, emailed or re-used – once it’s opened, it disappears!

YELP being YELP, you’ll also be encouraged to post a review about your shopping experience at the thrift store. We read all our reviews on YELP and take the comments very seriously. If you do take advantage of this coupon, we welcome your feedback on YELP!

With all these SPECIAL DISCOUNTS, shoppers, (not to mention our regular weekly sales), there’s NO EXCUSE not to shop at the ALI thrift store!

Welcome to the ALI Superhero Universe!

 

You’ve heard of the Marvel Superhero Universe? Welcome to the ALI Superhero Universe!

Just like the Marvel Universe, the ALI Universe is filled with superheroes in disguise. Most of the time, these people lead ordinary lives, just like you and me. They walk their dogs. They shop at Trader Joe’s. They post pictures of their vacations on Facebook.

But several times a month, their cell phones ping with the special “ALI Superheroes” signal. Answering the call, they shed their normal identities to become – ALI volunteers! With no special powers except for their huge hearts, they enter the secret lair known as the ALI Community Outreach Center/Thrift Shop, and from there go forth to help their neighbors in need.

The best thing about the ALI Superheroes Universe is – anyone can be a part of it! No radioactive spiders, genetic mutations, or alien microchips are necessary. All you need is the desire to make a difference in the lives of those in our community who need a helping hand.

AND – unlike the Marvel Universe – there’s no limit to the number of superheroes! VOLUNTEERS WANTED – NO SPECIAL POWERS REQUIRED.

(Watch for ALI’s upcoming ad campaign, featuring some of our superheroes in these great costumes, which were designed by Stephanie Lee. Stephanie is a former intern at the ALI thrift shop who is attending design school, and often contributes fashion ideas to our blog.)

A Piece of Orange County History

We know you thrift shoppers love things that are historic . . . and are bargains! Here’s an outing in Orange County that combines these! It’s a tour of “Arden” – the Helena Modjeska House, a National Historic Landmark built in 1888, in Modjeska Canyon. The docent-led tour is only $5.00 and is offered on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays, or the 2nd and 4th Saturdays, every month.

Madame Modjeska was the most famous Shakespearean actress in the country in the 1880s and 1890s. She and her husband, emigres from Poland, dreamed of owning a ranch in California. In 1888 they purchased the land in Santiago Canyon that would become Arden. Designed by the noted New York architect Stanford White and named for the magical Forest of Arden in Shakespeare’s “As You Like It,” Arden became an idyllic retreat where they where they could enjoy rustic ranch life and entertain a glittering list of celebrities of the day.

Visitors will love the vintage furnishings, the oak-shaded grounds, and the legacy of an immensely talented, artistic woman. To make a tour reservation or learn more, call 949-923-2230.

On a recent tour, our docent was dressed in a gorgeous vintage Victorian costume. You might want to check out the ALI thrift shop before you go to see if YOU can find some Victorian-looking clothing to put you in the spirit of Madame Modjeska!

Off the Grid at the Thrift Shop

By Marta Mahoney

It’s HOT out there, readers! And when it’s hot, we run our air conditioning and our fans. And when we all do that at once, we have power outages. And when we have power outages, we can’t watch TV, make microwave popcorn, or play computer games. We have to go OFF THE GRID and find other ways to entertain ourselves!

In fact, we had a power outage in Irvine just the other day. Now before we have another one (remember, we still have at least two months of REALLY HOT WEATHER), head over to the ALI thrift shop and get prepared! It’s HOT out there, readers! And when it’s hot, we run our air conditioning and our fans. And when we all do that at once, we have power outages. And when we have power outages, we can’t watch TV, make microwave popcorn, or play computer games. We have to go OFF THE GRID and find other ways to entertain ourselves!

• With no TV, you need puzzles and board games you can play by flashlight or candlelight (and we know you have flashlights and candles that you bought for earthquake preparedness, right?). And you can always read a book by flashlight – just like you did when you were a kid who was supposed to be asleep!
• Pick up some of our plastic margarita glasses or plastic tumblers. You’ll need to use up the ice, milk, and juice in your refrigerator, and the plastic glasses won’t break if you accidentally knock them on the floor in the dark.
• Buy some flip-flops from our shoe section, because it’ll be too hot to wear shoes.
• Get a supply of tank tops and shorts in case the power goes out for several days and you can’t do laundry.
• We always have a selection of water bottles – and you’ll need one to keep you cool.

Last but not least – take home a few DVDs from our vast collection, and hide them away to reward yourself with a “movie night” when the power comes back on!