Lighthouse Club’s “Threads” pop-up thrift store offers “really cute” secondhand clothing, raises thousands for fight against human trafficking
Students browse the clothing selection at the Threads pop-up thrift store on April 25.
Photo credit: Rachel Amey
By Natalie Guske
The Thom lobby underwent a temporary transformation on the weekend of April 25-26, as members of the Lighthouse Club decorated the space with clothes-laden racks and tables as part of an International Justice Mission fundraiser known as “Threads.”
Like all fundraisers hosted by the Lighthouse Club, the purpose of Threads is to raise funds and awareness for anti-human trafficking efforts.
“We spread awareness [by hosting] fundraisers in connection with IJM, the International Justice Mission,” junior Lighthouse member Brynn Holtmeier said. “IJM serves to rescue and help survivors recover from trafficking and does advocacy on both local and [federal] levels.”
While the Lighthouse Club works in connection with IJM by donating the proceeds of their fundraisers to them, they also use these fundraisers as a platform to educate their peers on the realities of modern-day slavery.
Students browse the clothing selection at the Threads thrift store. Photo: Rachel Amey
“We raise awareness for human trafficking because a lot of people don’t know that it’s not just in foreign countries,” freshman Grace Weber said. “[Human trafficking] is also very prevalent in America, even in Nebraska.”
Much planning and preparation were necessary for the fundraiser to be successful, such as placing collection boxes in local Lutheran churches and campus buildings.
“We collected donations for probably about a month,” Weber said. “We had boxes at St. John, the Rock, in David and in Thom. After we collected all of it, we took it all to the current [club] president’s house and sorted through them, getting rid of stuff that didn’t meet our requirements.”
The Threads sale was frequented by students and staff, as they came to peruse the pop-up shop’s wide variety of inventory and learn about the Lighthouse Club’s mission.
“I bought two really cute shirts [from the Threads sale],” admissions counselor Olivia Johnson said. “I knew [the proceeds of the sale] were going to the IJM to help survivors of human trafficking because I am familiar with Lighthouse and have shopped the pop-up store before.”
Overall, on the two days it was open, Threads raised $784 for IJM, raising the total amount of funds collected by the Lighthouse Club this year to $9,764.
“It’s been a great fundraising year for the Lighthouse Club,” Holtmeier said. “Between Dressember in the fall semester, Buy Flowers, Not Girls in February, and Threads, I believe the club has been able to raise almost 10 grand for IJM. So it’s been an incredible year.”
