By Ellen Airs

Special to The Pilot

Habitat for Humanity of the NC Sandhills invites everyone to come celebrate the 10th anniversary of its Moore Store on N.C. 5 at 10 a.m Friday, June 29.

There will be a ribbon cutting by area officials, refreshments and a celebration of the success of this Restore.

This endeavor has been a "win-win" for everyone involved. Residents donate items that otherwise might have gone into the landfill. Customers find bargains they can use. Although Habitat is a nonprofit, the store pays state sales taxes, and it employs five people.

And most importantly, its profits have helped build more than 100 Habitat homes in a decade.

It's not just individuals who give their "gently used" items to the store and get a tax deduction. Area hotels, such as Pinehurst Resort and Homewood Suites, as well as retirement homes, such as Penick Village, Quail Haven and Belle Meade, have donated furniture when they're remodeling.

Joy Wise, of Wise Associates, has the Habitat truck pick up the unsold items from its weekend estate sales, with the permission of the owner, who will benefit from the full tax write-off.

Some individuals call to have the contents of their entire house picked up when they move to another area or retirement home. Also, brand-new items are donated from retailers, such as Lowe's and the Plumbing Knight, when they have an update or overstock of a product.

"There's always something unique for the customer," manager Yvette McCormick says. "We've had expensive Murano glass made near Venice, Italy, as well as a vintage plow that a customer jumped at. The price of our goods is automatically depreciated 50 percent of its original value learned from research and depreciated more depending on the condition of the item."

In addition to the five paid employees, 60 volunteers work in four-hour shifts.

"Of the more than 200 volunteers we've had during these 10 years, many have been with us from the beginning," McCormick says.

An example of this is the Thursday morning team of Erma Burley, of Aberdeen, Barbara Nuti, of Seven Lakes, and Dot Kennihan, of Pinehurst. Burley and Nuti met during the first Habitat Women Build in 1994 (the fourth one will start in September) and continued building houses until the Moore Store opened in June 2002.

"The people I work with are wonderful and like family," Nuti says.

Bob Raney, another longtime volunteer in construction and now in the store, agrees. His wife, Peggy, was board chair and instigated this positive endeavor for Moore County.

Habitat Executive Director Elizabeth Cox emphasized the store's importance.

"The store has been an essential part of our affiliate's success, because no matter what the economy does, the income from the store helps significantly in building more homes for Moore County families, who partner with us," Cox says.

Anyone wanting to donate goods can call the store at (910) 295-2798. Anyone wishing to volunteer can call Judie Wiggins at (910) 295-1934.