By Dongyun Kwon
After one month of waiting since the official announcement was made, an opportunity shop in Healesville marked its reopening on Wednesday 4 December.
As Star Mail reported in early November, Healesville-Yarra Glen Uniting Church took over the East End Op Shop from Healesville Living and Learning Centre which had operated it for over four decades.
The church started refurbishing the op shop as soon as it took over the ownership, and the East End Op Shop has been reborn fresh.
Healesville Living and Learning Centre community development coordinator Shona Rimmer attended the reopening ceremony and bought a purple dressing gown and a cookbook.
“It’s so nice to see it so active,” she said.
“It’s beautiful, vibrant, fresh and lovely now.”
The refurbishment work has been done by a group of volunteers from Healesville-Yarra Glen Uniting Church and the local community.
Healesville-Yarra Glen Uniting Church chair Bruce Argyle said they would like to keep the legacy of Healesville Living and Learning Centre and continue that going forward.
“We’ve got new lighting, new floor at the back half, new shelving and painted everything,” he said.
“We’ve installed two air conditioner heaters for heating and cooling.
“We’ve also got new benches, a new kitchen, a new change room and new signs.”
The op shop will operate from 10am to 4pm on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and from 10am to 1pm on Saturday until the Christmas shutdown.
After two weeks of shutdown from 22 December to 7 January, the shop will reopen on 8 January with new operating hours and days.
Anyone who is interested in volunteering for the East End Op Shop is encouraged to call the East End Op Shop on 03 5962 1243.
