Serenity House Thrift Store’s

Designer Furniture Showcase and Bedroom Furniture Annex

Location: 551 W. Washington St., Sequim

New store hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday

Main store hours: 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays

More info: For furniture pick-ups, volunteering or more, call 360-683-8269

Donations: Accepted 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Saturday; furniture pick-ups available by appointment only (call 360-683-8269)

As the community continues to give, Serenity House Thrift Store continues to grow.

The store recently expanded its Designer Furniture Showcase and Bedroom Furniture Annex into the former KSQM 91.5 FM space just southwest of the main store at 551 W. Washington St., Sequim.

“This wouldn’t have happened without the community,” store director Belicia “Belle” Muñoz said.

One of the main reasons for the expansion, Muñoz said, is the number of items coming in.

“We had all this wonderful furniture coming in and no place for it to go,” she said.

Now with more space, the Showcase and Annex features wall-to-wall furnishings with each room designed by Muñoz and volunteer Helga Berger. Items range from sofas to art to fine China to hutches to mattresses to dining room tables to everything in-between.

“We’re always changing, and we don’t know what we’re going to get,” Muñoz said.

Leaders for Serenity House of Clallam County first expanded the Sequim store in 2017 with its small showcase for high-end donations followed by its Bedroom Furniture Annex in 2018.

The new space consolidates those efforts with the former Showcase used for storage. However, Muñoz said more expansion plans are in the works across Serenity Square.

“We hope everything in Serenity Plaza is a money-maker for the homeless,” she said.

Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce representatives held a ribbon cutting for its grand opening on March 2, and items have already flown out of the store, Muñoz said.

“It’s not uncommon for someone to buy out a whole room,” she said. “One sofa could have sold six times over on Saturday.”

Staff member Tessie Squires said people often ask if the store is on consignment because of its high quality.

“They’re shocked it’s not,” Squires said. “They could go elsewhere with their items, but they choose to donate here.”

Inventory comes from an array of donors Muñoz said, including family estates, people downsizing/decluttering and/or simply looking to help.

The Serenity House Thrift Store employs 12 people and hosts about 30 volunteers. Muñoz said with the expansion, some staff hours were expanded to accommodate the changes.

Store specifics

The Designer Furniture Showcase and Bedroom Furniture Annex is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, while the existing store is open 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays.

Staff ask all furniture purchases be picked up within 24 hours. One-time delivery of purchased items with no limit is available for $45.

Donations can be dropped off at the main store on the east side of the building 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Saturday. Furniture pick-ups are available by appointment only by calling 360-683-8269.

Purchases help support programs run by Serenity House of Clallam County, which accounts for 90 percent of the homeless services provided throughout the county, staff members said.

Supporting services

Serenity House Director Doc Robinson said the Showcase/Annex means an “enormous” amount to the nonprofit’s efforts.

Last year, the Sequim store earned about $730,000, he said, with 50 percent of that going to its services for housing, education and job programs and more.

In Sequim, Robinson said the thrift store helps pay for permanent housing at the Sunbelt Apartments and two new family shelter units becoming available in the fall.

This year, Serenity House leaders set a goal for $1 million in Sequim revenues but February’s snowfall may have impacted that goal for this year, Robinson said.

Port Angeles’ Serenity Thrift Store closed two years ago because of declining revenues, Robinson said, but he does want to open another store in Port Angeles at some point. However, what it will look like and where it will be located is unknown, he said.

For more information about Serenity House of Clallam County, visit www.serenityhouseclallam.org or call 360-683-8269.

Reach Matthew Nash at mnash@sequimgazette.com.

Mattresses line one of the many rooms in the Designer Furniture Showcase and Bedroom Furniture Annex recently opened by Serenity Thrift Store and orchestrated by store director Belicia “Belle” Muñoz. Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash

The Serenity Thrift Store’s Designer Furniture Showcase and Bedroom Furniture Annex features everything from fine art and pottery to sofas to hutches to mattresses to dining room tables. Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash

With Serenity Thrift Store’s new space, the Designer Furniture Showcase and Bedroom Furniture Annex, becoming so popular within a week of opening, store director Belicia “Belle” Muñoz said rooms like this are already being sold as a whole. Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash