Today while staying at our friends, Mearl and Sharon McBee's beach home, I took my husband to his first shopping experience at a thrift store. Cindy Daniel and I grew up finding bargains at discount stores like Mac Frugal and Ross but, the best kept secret was always finding a vintage couture piece at our local Goodwill, Salvation Army or area charity thrift store. In Fort Worth, we love the YWCA thrift store on Camp Bowie. Today I visited the Haven House Mission Thrift Shop at 12381 US HWY 98 in Destin, Florida. They also have a second location at 3384 US HWY 98 in Santa Rosa Beach. Their slogan is "help us help others." The reason is that by shopping and saving money, your purchases provide the income to support numerous charitable organizations. The Haven House is non profit and your donations are tax deductible. Serving the community for 17 years, Haven House Mission was established to support men in recovery from alcohol or chemical dependency. Haven House provides a faith based, safe, family atmosphere in a nurturing environment of love and support through traditional values. Their Thrift Shops offer work therapy opportunities for their residents and are critical components to meeting the recovery program goals. Work therapy gives residents the opportunity to build relationships, learn new skills, work towards a common goal, and practice discipline with structure. Every resident is given the opportunity to establish responsible work routines and ethics. By adhering to these standards of accountability and punctuality, residents learn healthy habits that will aid them after they graduate from the program. Do you have a donation? Looking for a bargain? Visit them today and "like" them on Facebook. Many churches and food pantries rely on income through their second hand stores to fund charitable organizations so why not get our if the mall and go on a treasure hunt to find something you didn't even know you needed yourself? I always have a great time shopping second hand stores and they are staffed with friendly and helpful staffs so, if you've never been, expand your shopping this holiday season to include a stop by and help them to help others. Reverend Wendy Wortham Texas Twins Events