Heathcote Hope Shop – a second-hand store with a difference
BY LAUREN MARTIN
A new Community of Hope that opened its doors in Sydney this week aims to be a place of belonging and welcome to all.
The ‘Hope Shop’ at Heathcote is part of Shire Salvos and combines a second-hand retail store with a community space where people can enjoy hot drinks, warm meals and fellowship.
At its official opening on 27 May, Shire Salvos Mission Leader Mark Soper said the Hope Shop would be so much more than a second-hand store.
“This is not just a store; we want this to be a place where people can belong and be known. Part of the shop is actually a sitting area where people can come, sit, and have conversations.”
The centre has a large kitchen to cook and supply meals to people in need. Fresh food and groceries will also be available. It has an office where a Salvation Army homelessness support worker will see people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. It’s envisaged that other Salvation Army services, such as Moneycare Financial Counselling and Doorways casework, will also be available at the Heathcote Hope Shop.
“We will be making this place a residential address for those who are sleeping rough because if you’re sleeping rough, you cannot get a government benefit unless you have a residential address. That’s actually a real stumbling block for a lot of people.”
The suburb of Heathcote, on Sydney’s southern edges, borders the Royal National Park, where many people experiencing homelessness live.
“We will convert one of the toilets out the back into a shower for people who might need a shower, and we will also have a laundry facility,” said Mark. Upstairs from the Hope Shop is a three-bedroom unit, which will be used as transitional housing.
Barbara’s heart for homeless
The inception of the Hope Shop has been God-ordained, with the idea coming from a local woman, Barbara Koppe, who began to connect with the work of Shire Salvos in nearby Helensburgh.
She shared her heart for the people experiencing homelessness who lived in the national park, and she wondered if there was anything that The Salvation Army could do. That then led to a meeting between the Barbara, Shire Salvos representatives and the owner of a local second-hand store, who was looking to retire and thrilled when she heard what The Salvation Army wanted to do in the space.
“There is a real culture in Heathcote of people giving back,” said Mark, referring to the beautiful work that was already being done in the community to assist locals in need through the second-hand shop and also a free-food ministry run by a local couple that The Salvation Army will now partner with and continue.
The centre will be run by Salvation Army community worker James Redwood and part-time outreach worker Chez Wilson (nicknamed The Salvation Army’s ‘pocket rocket’ for her huge faith and heart for others, despite her small stature!). Local volunteers will also staff the centre. “We’re dependent on the community … and we are passionate about working together,” said Mark. “Because I believe that when we work together, great outcomes happen.”
God has brought the right people on board to assist. Craig and Robin Smith are two key volunteers. Robin ‘just happened’ to meet Shire Salvos Mission Leader Mark Soper in a café when Mark was seeking the Lord to provide resources for the Hope Shop. He had specifically prayed to God that the centre would need passionate Christians skilled in vocations like hairdressing, coffee-making, food preparation, and builders to help renovate the centre.
“Things were moving slowly, and although I had a deep faith that God wanted us to be in this space, I was starting to have doubts,” Mark said.
“And then what happened, I was just about to walk out of the café, and I was sharing with a couple that I had met about our vision for the work at Heathcote, and then this woman came up and said, ‘I overheard you talking about Heathcote, do you have five minutes to chat?’”
It turned out that the woman – Robin Smith – was a qualified hairdresser, a barista, and a certified chef and wanted to volunteer. “Robin was a confirmation for me at that time that God had everything under control,” said Mark.
It also turned out that Robin’s husband, Craig, is a project manager and handyman – another answer to prayer!
“I think God definitely had a plan for me to meet Mark that day and I totally believe that it was the plan for us to meet and become involved in this, and for Craig too,” said Robin. “As Christians, we’ve got to look after people and to befriend and talk and just be with people … and show our faith in actions as well as words is important.”
Craig has been assisting with the renovations of the Hope Shop, and the couple plans to volunteer every Monday. “I think it’s a good outreach. There are a lot of people in need, and I think it’s important that we help people that are less fortunate than ourselves,” she said.
The Salvation Army honours and remembers Barbara Koppe, whose vision for The Salvation Army to assist people in need in her local area has now been realised. Unfortunately, Barbara passed away before the opening of the Hope Shop. She will be lovingly remembered by all who knew her.
