The Enjoyment of Visiting Thrift Stores Near Me

Visitors and residents alike, here on America’s favorite vacation island, tell us they feel good just knowing that they didn’t leave the nearest thrift store behind when they came to paradise. In fact, although it is not exactly a secret, it seems like one of those bits of inside knowledge that are shared among friends. For many – and for many years – that favorite boutique thrift shop on Hilton Head Island has been The Church Mouse.

Behind the flair and quality of the items people find and buy at The Church Mouse – some call it unique among thrift stores – the secret of success is the guiding impulse behind it all. The circle of good in which The Church Mouse plays a role begins with gratitude. A newcomer to Hilton Head Island remarked recently, “I was astonished by the amount of charitable effort people make here. You see it all around.” When people come to the Island and relax, it seems natural that they realize how thankful they feel for the chance to be here, whether for vacation or for everyday life.

This gratitude leads many to find ways of sharing, and that’s how The Church Mouse began.

The Heart of the Island

Always located not far from the Sea Pines Circle, the central point of “south island,” where the original vision of a world-class resort began, the Arrow Road site of The Church Mouse makes it the nearest thrift store for visitors to the Sea Pines Resort, as well as Forest Beach and the upscale neighborhood of Wexford. This favored location may have something to do with the unusual quality and selection people find among the well-loved items people donate for The Church Mouse to sell.

Certainly, our location makes getting here for a quick look around an easy choice, whether the day you’ve planned is busy or languid. The selection of clothing, jewelry, and even furnishings and décor for a vacation home, is easy to check out. Our bright, airy interior is a welcome contrast from what many expect to encounter at a thrift store. People say when they come through the door that it’s a bit more like visiting someone’s home.

The welcome people get from The Church Mouse volunteers plays a big part in that feeling. They’re dedicated, surely, yet they’re also having fun. This is the favorite charitable endeavor of some of the Island’s most interesting people.

Where Designers Live On

It seems appropriate, in view of the fact that a second home on Hilton Head Island has been the fortunate destination for discerning folks, for generations. Ralph Lauren, Tory Burch, and Lily Pulitzer are just a few of the designer labels that find a second home from the local thrift store, when they are donated for sale at The Church Mouse. Furnishings from Henredon and Drexel Heritage, too. Home chefs – and the families that benefit from their passion for cooking – find the well-made means for cooking and serving that makers such as Le Creuset and Waterford can provide.

The things people find at The Church Mouse were well loved, and too good to retire. Instead, donors bring them here for a new chapter of their working life, in a new home. It is a role that your nearest thrift store is happy and grateful to fulfill – connecting the chapters of the useful life of these fine goods. Our donors chose wisely when they selected these items. Our shoppers choose wisely again when they take them home.

The Gentle Waves of Good

The proceeds from fulfilling this mission create waves of benefit that radiate from The Church Mouse throughout our community, and beyond. Each year, proceeds from The Church Mouse sales go to about fifty local and regional charities. And so, when you patronize “the nearest thrift store” here on Hilton Head Island, you feel the satisfaction of knowing that you are doing well by doing good.

Thanks to the tireless and generous work of dozens of volunteers, all our earnings go from The Church Mouse to around 50 local charities, who apply each year, as well as to Christian missions and ministries outside the U.S. Priority is given to organizations located in Beaufort and Jasper Counties. Charities and causes include providing food, shelter, and clothing; education and literacy; prison ministries; disaster victims; as well as physical and spiritual care for babies, children, the elderly, and those with disabilities or mental illness.

A Favorite Indoor Sport

Behind the obvious allure of golf, tennis, and beaches on America’s favorite vacation island, “thrifting near me” is said by many to be second only to dining out, among Hilton Head Island’s indoor diversions. As a break from our abundant sunshine, or even as a Plan B for our rare rainy days, devoting a leisurely stroll through the offerings of The Church Mouse is a version of hitting the nearest thrift store that has come to be a real agenda item for visitors and residents alike.

We look forward to welcoming you to The Church Mouse, a boutique thrift shop where donors, volunteers, and shoppers all discover that their nearest thrift store is also their favorite.