Hats off to members of the greater Pikes Peak region’s faith community for stepping up to help residents in need. Their handiwork: the new CrossFire Ministries thrift store, scheduled to open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

The shop at 4609 Austin Bluffs Parkway will sell donated clothing for all ages, toys, linens and bedding, kitchenware, tools, shoes, books, jewelry, household decor and other goods. It’s a strategic pivot at a critical time for the ministry, as it will serve as a revenue-producing complement to its headquarters at 3975 N. Academy Boulevard, which specializes in no-cost groceries for those in need.

By moving the ministry’s small thrift shop on Academy over to the 13,500 square-foot complex, formerly a Family Dollar and Rite Aid, on Austin Bluffs, Crossfire is banking on more people — both in need and also those looking for good deals —to walk through the door. Customers’ purchases, at a modest cost, will fund the food and goods Crossfire provides. 

The ministry is further motivated to try changes and get creative with their approach as federal funding cuts have decreased the amount of taxpayer dollars nonprofits like Crossfire have gotten directly from the government to subsidize their operations. But demand for free food and hygiene products, utilities assistance and life skills classes is still there.

That’s where the collaborative charity of 20 local Pikes Peak-area churches supporting Crossfire has come through. Private-sector volunteerism, financial contributions and in-kind donations are up amid the federal belt tightening as Crossfire embraces more of a community-centric approach.

It’s a win-win for the everyday people of Colorado Springs and the ministry — stop by the thrift store to purchase what you can, almost certainly at a cheaper price. The prominent, central location on Austin Bluffs should also help the ministry achieve its communal mission.

Every day, all around us, such low-key, small-scale charitable endeavors are doing good. And though organizations such as Crossfire, with its annual budget of $700,000 sometimes leverage public funding to enhance services, they and a host of other charitable endeavors do much of their good works without public funding. 

All such efforts are a godsend for our community. 

Crossfire serves 450 clients each day as the ministry registers 20 new families daily who have never used its services before. More money via clothing and home goods purchases on Austin Bluffs means more food for these needy families from Care and Share Food Bank for Southern Colorado. And the location switch, on top of bringing in more money, also opens up the old thrift-store space on Academy for Crossfire’s 50 to 60 daily volunteers to provide clients with another element of community: shared space in the flesh, in this case via a multipurpose room.

Representatives with Crossfire say the 12,000 to 15,000 items you’ll be able to buy at the new thrift store will be of the same quality as what you’d buy new in a regular retail store. That’s thanks to repairs and restoration on an item-by-item basis.

Check out the new thrift store during its celebratory launch Saturday and then Tuesday through Saturday of next week. You’ll see charity in action — one of many examples across the Pikes Peak region.