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17 Years- Neat Repeats Grants Total $1.3 Million

Tuesday May 1, 2007

By Bridget Dorman

    Neat Repeats, located on Bakery Lane in downtown Middlebury, recently completed its seventeenth year in business.  To date, 2047 grants have been awarded, totaling $1.3 million.  Neat Repeats directors, Linda Waterman and Diane Howlett have seen first hand what these dollars have provided for Addison County and the effect it has had on many local individuals and organizations that have benefitted from these grants.

    Linda was one of the founders of the shop in 1990; Diane came on board in 1994 as a volunteer and became a director in 2002.  Both take pride in the fact that community support through donations contribute to the shop’s ability to sell quality items in order to improve others’ quality of life.

    Neat Repeats, a non-profit, carries clothing, accessories, house wares and other miscellaneous items.  All of the profits from sales are given back to the community in the form of grants.  In 2006-2007, 191 grants, totaling $116,408, were awarded  to local individuals and organizations.  The money was used to help with a variety of needs including dental work, rent, car repair, educational endeavors and family assistance.  The shop considers an average of twenty five grant requests monthly.  It is a volunteer operation that requires many hands and individual generosity.  More generous-minded volunteers are needed:  their gift of self cannot be understated!

    Neat Repeats accepts donations during business hours (9:30-4:30 Monday-Saturday) and at their 24 hour drop-off site located just outside the shop door.  More volunteers are needed to perform duties such as sorting, pricing and assisting customers.  Some of the present volunteers expend energy by laundering donated clothing at home.  Items deemed not saleable by the shop are sorted for disposal or donated to other venues where they can be utilized, such as blankets and towels which are taken to the Humane Society.  The shop benefits from resalable items in particular and would like to encourage community members to deliver only goods that are of resale quality.

    Neat Repeats welcomes requests for grant assistance.  Donors have the option of specifying an organization to which they would like the profit from the sale of their donations to be distributed.  The direct relationship that Neat Repeats fosters between each donation and  the grant recipients is a unique opportunity for Addison County, priding itself on a sense of community.  When a customer quietly leans across  the Neat counter after purchasing something from Neat Repeats, and says “thank you”, Linda, Diane and all of the volunteers can hear the sincerity behind the appreciation.  Thank you at Neat Repeats means more than just “thank you, for this great summer dress!” - It also means, “thank you.  You helped my neighbor.”

    Thank you to Neat Repeats from all of Addison County.  If you would like to volunteer at Neat Repeats, please call the shop at 388-4488.

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