There was much up for grabs at the Discovery Inn on Saturday.
The venue hosted a garage sale to raise funds for a Vineyard Church mission trip to South Africa. The Life in Our Church group plans to join the Logos Hope, a ship that travels around the world to bring knowledge, help and hope to people in need.
The garage sale included a variety of items donated by the congregation, such as electronics, books and clothes.
“It’s basically a big floating book fair, and on board the ship, you can come on board and they have a variety of books for sale,” said Ben Baird, a member of the church, adding that the excursion will take place over 10 days at the end of March. “They do outreach projects like water purification projects, building projects, painting projects and all that kind of fun stuff — and then bringing hope. We just share, you know, the Christian belief, I guess that Jesus brings hope to the world.”
Baird said 10 members of the congregation will fly to South Africa to board the vessel, which has visited nearly 500 ports in more than 150 countries since 1970.
The garage sale is one of the many fundraisers they have held for the trip, including movie nights, gift cards and breakfasts.
“It’s a great opportunity to serve others and share our faith,” he said.
Alan Seaman, one of the members of the group, said they are offering a variety of gift cards for different franchises in town, such as Starbucks and Boston Pizza. He said the gift cards are worth the same amount as the cash they receive, but they get a small percentage from the vendor.
“It’s very handy for you because it’s much easier than to carry than money,” he said. “And at the same time, you help our mission.”
Seaman said they are also selling books that they have collected from donations or from their own library. The reading material is mostly Christian-themed, but there are also some fiction and non-fiction titles, he noted.