Best of the Northland

Goodwill

There are 14 Goodwill retail stores across northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin where you can shop for great bargains or donate gently used household goods. Four of the stores are located right here in the Twin Ports. This writer is most familiar with the one on Garfield Avenue. Wow! What a nice selection of clothing, dishes and household goods! I especially like how the women’s clothing is organized not only by size, but color. It makes shopping for the right outfit so much easier. Of course, even a better reason to feel good about Goodwill is their commitment to helping the men and women who train and work there become a real part of the community. The public got a poignant glimpse of this about a month ago, when the Goodwill community lost one its own, Brian Respler. This dependable and hardworking husband and father who had gotten where he was with the help of Goodwill, was struck and killed by a driver under the influence. And when the tributes started to roll in, Goodwill’s positive impact on this precious man’s life was clear. When you support Goodwill, you support people like Brian, and that’s what makes this year’s choice of Goodwill as best second hand store feel really good.

Runner Up: Dannie Duluth