One year ago, the Academy Spouses’ Club Thrift Shop was in the throes of a painful closure, after being a solid presence on the U.S. Air Force Academy grounds for 55 years.

Now, the popular shop has returned with donated clothing and household treasures for sale and this week is rebooting a Lending Closet, which will lend household supplies to military families moving in and out while their own goods are in transit.

“We’re so excited about it to be reopened; we did hear everyone was so upset about the shutdown,” said Katharine Maguire, president of the Academy Spouses’ Club. The 55-member philanthropic and social organization raises money for scholarships for military dependents and also to benefit other organizations on base and military affiliates in the community.

That’s why when Maguire took over as president on June 1, 2023, she made it a priority to see what she could do to save the operation, which opened in 1958, the year the academy relocated to Colorado Springs.

Academy leadership unexpectedly notified the group in February of 2023 that the shop needed to close. The club’s executive board had discovered that policies governing thrift shop operations were no longer fully compliant with changes made in state law in 2021 and had requested a pause in business to remedy the unnamed issues.

The installation commander denied the appeal and instead revoked authorization for the private organization to run its store on the federal property.

Club members were given an exit date of March 31. But the club did not have enough volunteers to make that timeline, Maguire said, so the deadline was extended to June 15.

“Last year at this time we held a final sale, trying to clear the space out,” she said.

All consigned items were returned to owners and their accounts settled, and remaining goods that did not sell were donated to local charities. For example, all uniforms were given to the Civil Air Patrol, which hosted a summer event at the academy, and a new organization building a home for mothers received the baby items.

As Maguire took over as club president last year, a new wing commander arrived.

Seeing a potential opportunity, the club’s board created a proposal for a reenvisioned enterprise.

“We presented it to the commander, who thought it was a great idea,” Maguire said. “She really believed in our vision.”

The thrift shop is located in the same space as it’s always been, in the base’s Community Center, which also has a post office, a pharmacy and Academy Federal Credit Union.

One change to increase the store’s usefulness to the military population includes forgoing consignment sales, as under the previous setup, and instead offering the space as a room for lunches and meetings for up to 15 people from any group.

“As spouses, we noticed there are not a lot of places for groups that are not having big formal events to meet,” Maguire said. “It’s a new, welcoming spot in the Community Center that people can use.”

A different assistance program at the Academy, the Family Readiness Center, had operated a Lending Closet, which went by the wayside during the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s  now another mission of the spouses’ club.

“A lot of times your stuff travels separately than you, so your household goods may be two weeks out, but you’re here and don’t want to purchase new stuff,” Maguire said.

In the gap, families can borrow plates, cutlery, toasters, coffee machines and other necessities.

A food pantry also is in the works at the site, for people who live on the installation and sign up through their first sergeant.

“A lot of people are struggling right now and having issues with food insecurity,” Maguire said.

As word spreads that the Academy Spouses’ Club Thrift Shop has reopened, the store is getting busier, she added.

Members of the public who have access to the base can shop there; it’s open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, and every third Saturday of the month. It will be closed May 29 and May 30 due to graduation ceremonies.

Because it’s a private organization, sales tax is applied to purchases.