by Iris Winston
A small child with a broad smile clutches the toy treasure he just found. An adult looks almost as pleased to see an attractive sweater on a rack nearby — the exact colour and design she needed. Meanwhile, ripples of laughter fill the air as customers and servers chat.
These are regular sights and sounds as neighbours meet at The Hub today, just as they did on numerous other occasions over the last half century in Almonte. This special secondhand store has been in the business of supporting the community for the last 50 years.
It all began in 1974 when two local organizations (the Almonte Neighbourhood Club and the Almonte branch of the CHEO auxiliary) collaborated as the Almonte Community Coordinators (ACC) to open a thrift store and meeting place with particular emphasis on helping families with small children.
“Both the store and meeting rooms for people looking for help with social services were very small at the start,” says Mary Lou Souter, a past president of the board and its current treasurer. “And we soon outgrew the space.”
But it wasn’t until after a major fire in 1997 that The Hub was forced to relocate from 66 Mill Street and move to its present location—the former Royal Bank of Canada at 118 Mill Street (once the O’Brien theatre) which RBC sold to ACC for one dollar.
From the beginning, notes current president Janet Duncan, the organization has been supported by a very active group of as many as 100 volunteers at any time. It now also has a small group of paid staff to organize the flow of donations that arrive daily.
“The Hub has evolved quite a lot over the years,” says Mary Loua retired teacher and current Mississippi Mills councillor. “When I first joined, I was 28 and on maternity leave and the average age of volunteers was around 30. It was a time of major social change and activism.”
Major concern about violence against women, she says, led the group to focus on establishing a shelter for women in Lanark County. Interval House, which opened its doors in 1979, was “the first big spinoff” from The Hub and remains one of the many local charities that the ACC supports through sales at the store.
“That was our first big initiative,” says Mary Lou. “We looked into others, such as establishing recycling programs and exercise classes, but, by then, the focus was more directly on the store. As people grew older and new volunteers came in, they were far more interested in working for the store. We are one of the few charities that can support itself and other charitable efforts too.”
By 2004, the group had opened a sister store, Rebound, devoted to selling larger items such as furniture, appliances and artwork. The Hub, mortgage-free after major renovations to its building, supports a number of charitable efforts in the community, donating close to $1.4 million to the community over the 50 years it has been in operation.
As well as continuing to support Interval House, funds raised through The Hub and Rebound support the local food bank, the Alzheimer Society’s day-away programs and other local causes. Some further markers of community support include Mark’s Outlook and a number of annual bursaries.
Mark’s Outlook, named for Mark Stevens, a patient at the Almonte General Hospital for several years, is an accessible viewing platform by the river. The bursaries are for adults whose education was interrupted as well as for high school students particularly interested in environmental matters.
“We’re very proud of all that The Hub is able to do for the community,” says Mary Lou. “It takes a very large group of dedicated people to run the stores and, as we see it, The Hub supports the whole of Mississippi Mills.”
For further information on The Hub, now celebrating its 50th birthday, visit www.thehubalmonte.com.
