DAPHNE, Ala. — Sister Julie Guillot’s mission for more than a decade has been to improve the lives of low-income residents.

Eastern Shore Affordable Houses Inc., the not-for-profit organization she has run since 1993, spans St. Joseph’s Way, a low-income subdivision of donated houses from other Eastern Shore areas; Sister Julie’s Resale Shop, a Fairhope thrift store; and now, a resale store in Daphne.

The Daphne store’s grand opening is set for 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 1. Though Guillot is a Catholic nun, the store — located at 1901 Main St., across from Little Bethel Baptist Church — is non-denominational. Items currently include sofas, dining sets, a piano, hats, bedding, books and Christian and secular holiday decorations, among others.

All the store’s inventory is donated.

“The only thing that I do not take is clothes,” Guillot said, adding that such items, particularly in bulk, are difficult to process.

All donations are inspected and cleaned, Guillot said, before they are priced — that is, if they aren’t trashed. 

“Ninety percent of the stuff (we get) is great,” Guillot said. “But that 10 percent will drive you crazy.”

Sometimes, people unload items that are better suited for a landfill, she said, adding that her stores will  not sell items that are broken or “bad looking.”

“I really do want things for this shop that are very nice, that are still in good condition, that are still useable,” she said. “I think that if you don’t want to use ‘this’ for yourself, or don’t want to have it for yourself, don’t give it to poor people — because it’s not worth having.

“Think twice about the things that you give.”

After all, apart from the thrift stores, ESAH provides — or sells at a modest price — furniture and household items, such as pots and pans, for people in poverty, or those who’ve survived crises such as house fires, and who need life’s essentials. It’s been ESAH’s mission since its 1993 inception; the organization began repairing homes in 1997, Guillot said.

Consequently, “I really don’t want junk,” she said.

Returning to Daphne

 Guillot — facing a successful three years at her Fairhope location on 110 S. Section St. —  said she thought about moving to Daphne when the Fairhope location received a steady surplus in donations, but little storage space to keep pace. Many donations, she said, already came from Daphne, so opening a store in the Jubilee City made sense. The move — more of a return to Daphne, as ESAH, prior to establishing its store in Fairhope, for seven years had 7,000 square feet of storage space just off U.S. Highway 98 — means roughly 1,500 additional square feet for storage. The Fairhope location spans about 2,500 square feet, Guillot said. 

An average of two people tend to each store — all are volunteers; most are women, senior citizens, who are retired or semi-retired. 

All proceeds from both the Daphne and Fairhope stores benefit ESAH: after the rent and utility bills are paid, the remainder is used for home repairs or other initiatives, Guillot said.

Guillot said she’s never had trouble paying the bills at her Fairhope store, and that both stores always must surpass “breaking even” financially, in order to fulfill their purpose.

“We’ve always made more money than we had expenses,” Guillot said of the Fairhope location. “We’re hoping it’s gonna be the same way here (in Daphne).”

However, amid an economic recession — and a national jobless rate of 10.2 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest figures — is she concerned about opening a store?

Not really; in fact, she believes the resale shop may work in everyone’s favor.

That’s true “especially now,” she said; “because of the economy, there are a lot of people who can’t afford to buy things new and they are very happy to shop and get second-hand things that are still in very good condition for a very cheap price,” Guillot said. “A lot of people who weren’t yard-sale and thrift-shop shoppers before, are now yard-sale and thrift-shop shoppers because of the economy.”

Good buys, for customers at this store, can reap benefits and an improved lifestyle for Guillot’s clients.

Donate a home

ESAH’s life source — in addition to the resale shops, volunteers and storage space — is its building materials and funds. 

“People do donate houses to us,” Guillot said. “Basically, a lot of them buy the house and the property just to get the property because they want to build their own dream home, retirement home, and they don’t really want the house or cottage that’s on the property. But they’re reluctant to tear it down and just send it off to the dump; so they do very often call and find out if we would be willing to take the house.

“If we’re able to sell the house, the money goes into our organization. If we’re able to move the house to a needy family, then we have to have the money to move it and to rehab(ilitate) the house.”

Moving a house can cost between $20,000 to $25,000; necessary repairs can cost between $15,000 to $20,000, Guillot said.

The materials cost big bucks, but the labor’s cheap — in fact, for this all-volunteer organization, it’s free.

Most volunteers for home improvements come from Daphne, Fairhope and Spanish Fort churches. Youth groups are frequent helpers; in August, for instance, 130 teens and 20 team leaders with HEART — Helping Everyone Attain Repairs Today — helped clear yards and paint houses at St. Joseph’s Way, a seven-lot Fairhope subdivision with six donated homes.

Sister Julie’s Resale Shop’s hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

The store is closed on Wednesdays.