Habitat for Humanity ReStore dealing with wind damage

Like many other places in Saskatchewan, the Habitat For Humanity Regina ReStore is dealing with damage from a January windstorm.

Winds reached more than 100 kilometres per hour in certain areas of the province on Jan. 13 and 14.

“The wind hit a lot of homes and businesses in and around Regina. The ReStore was also one of those. We have a large sign on the back of our building and lets everyone down Winnipeg Street know where we are. The whole sign is gone,” said store manager Amanda Partridge.

She said it’s going to cost more than $5,000 to replace the sign.

(Amanda Partridge/Submitted)

The store takes in old appliances, fixes them up and then sells them at a lower, resale price. Oftentimes the store will leave donations outside in its backyard until there is room inside the store to stock them. It also takes donations of old furniture and building materials.

“Those items were tossed around the parking lot. Lots of them just went into the recycle bin, which is still great — it keeps them out of the landfill — but it was definitely something we were looking at fixing up and selling,” Partridge said.

“We sell all those items at a reduced resale cost and all that money goes to our affordable home ownership program. If we don’t have items to sell, then that limits what we can put back into the community.”

The windstorm contributed to what has already been a trying time for Habitat for Humanity officials due to COVID. Partridge said they had to close for a few months when the COVID-19 pandemic first hit Saskatchewan.

“It has certainly added to our cleaning bill. Anything we get, we clean and sanitize anyways, but we have to be extra careful now,” Partridge said. “It has put a bit of a wrench in things, but we are prevailing as much as we can and the store has still been getting support from the community.”

The store put out a call for donations after the windstorm and said the community has been stepping up in a big way.

“Our truck drivers have been going Wednesday through (Friday) on a full schedule when it had been a little more spotty than that before,” Partridge said.

People can call 306-347-4656 to schedule pre-pickup for items and the donor gate is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday.