As times get tougher, it gets harder and harder for non-profit resale and thrift shops to recruit and keep volunteers.

There are fewer volunteers to go around, as formerly-available people are finding they must take paying jobs, and as the great majority of thrift-store volunteers grow older (and, presumably, their sons and daughters have not yet had the opportunity to realize how good giving back feels.)

That’s why, when I ran across the Montgomery County Thrift Shop site, I was so intrigued. Five agencies split the days that they must fill volunteer hours, thus making recruiting a bit easier. The agencies also split the income and, I assume, the responsibility for expenses. Volunteers can even designate their hours to whichever charity they wish, so if they want to work Mondays and “their” charity’s day is Thursday, that works too!

The shop has been in existence for almost 70 years, so I think they’ve got a winner of a volunteer structure here!

Read more about their volunteer structure and how it works.