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It may be easy to miss while strolling the sidewalk of University Avenue, but stand before University United Methodist Church and glance up to a stained glass window embedded in the structure’s facade. Behind this historic detail lives a quaint thrift store — Lydia’s Attic — a curated gold mine for local fashion aficionados and environmentalists alike.

“It’s one of the ways we want to connect with our community,” Connie Myers, UUMC member and a Lydia’s Attic volunteer, said. “We want to have people see that there are more things to do here than just come on Sunday mornings.”

Nestled on the third floor of UUMC, Lydia’s Attic opened its doors to the public in late September and welcomes shoppers every Saturday and Sunday afternoon. UUMC senior pastor Alicia Wood and a small group of congregants started the shop after brainstorming last fall about how to raise money for the ministry and make use of the church’s vacant space.

The community-grown thrift shop was inspired by a recent college graduate in the congregation who began helping out around the church before beginning her master’s degree. She planned a one-day rummage sale in September 2023, which she promoted on social media.

She earned $400 from the sale and donated it to UUMC. Wood said she didn’t expect a large number of young adults and college students to show up to shop.

“I didn’t know this until the young adult had all these people that are young come in the rummage sale and we were like, ‘Let’s open a thrift shop.’”

Solange Jain | Asst. Photo Editor

Lydia’s Attic is open on Saturdays and Sundays and welcomes everyone in the area, from college students to church members to neighborhood residents. The store sells vintage and secondhand clothing at affordable prices.

Wood said the shop is named after Lydia, a woman in the Bible who appears in Acts 16 and encountered the Apostle Paul during a missionary trip after his conversion to Christianity. She was the first European to be baptized in the Bible. Lydia sold purple cloth, an indication of wealth. Wood said they decided to add purple to the brand’s logo to symbolize Lydia’s life and work.

Lydia’s Attic is filled with high-quality clothing, from a pair of light blue Chanel sneakers to Buffalo Bills merchandise, occupying circular racks and nearly all four walls. Jewelry pieces and delicate items are also on display on the shop’s back counter. Wood said the thrift shop is on the more costly and trendy side, unlike the church’s free clothing room.

For several years, UUMC has hosted its free clothing room on Thursday and Sunday mornings, which Wood said is geared toward people who are housing insecure.

“A lot of families come because you can pay all the bills and maybe put food on the table, but to buy your kids clothes as they grow is a little challenging,” Wood said.

To Wood, it’s a “lovely ministry,” because people in need of support can visit and volunteers can hear their stories.
Between the free clothing room and Lydia’s Attic, program volunteers are focused on donations, which sometimes come from church members. Other times, students living in university housing contribute when they leave clothes behind at the end of each semester. Wood said it’s at these times she taps her network of contacts to gather disowned items for the free clothing room.

“We make sure the free clothing room gets what they need because we don’t want anyone who is housing insecure to not have socks on their feet or, in the summer, clothing that’s cool,” Wood said.

When the garments and accessories amass in the free clothing room, volunteers sort through them, keeping in mind the needs and wants of both the free room and the thrift shop. Myers said the group relies on the expertise of college students to determine what’s trendy and appealing for different crowds.

Solange Jain | Asst. Photo Editor

Lydia’s Attic is run exclusively by volunteers who take shifts over the course of the weekend. Volunteers manage the shop, handle financial transactions and aid customers in their shopping experience.

Syracuse University sophomores Teaghan Brostrom, Gwen Laats and Heidi Atkins visited Lydia’s Attic for the first time a month after the business opened. Brostrom said she and her two friends visited other thrift and antique shops in the area, but the experiences haven’t always been to their liking.

“I don’t necessarily love to dig,” Brostom said. “So it’s nice to be able to just look through things that I know I’ll like more and it’s nice that this is close.”

Atkins added that though it’s curated, it’s also inexpensive. Laats said she likes how the items feel more mature, a style that’s perfect for a college student like herself who may need business casual attire.

In addition to Lydia’s Attic, UUMC holds an emergency food site every Friday, free breakfast on Sunday mornings and a diaper giveaway on the first Wednesday of every month. UUMC is driven by social principles that guide the community, and Lydia’s Attic finds its place in bridging these values.

“Our morals that are faith-driven, like being good stewards of our earth and climate,” Wood said. “Another is, buying sustainably and buying and wearing with intention. We were like, ‘This is perfect, we’re going to put this in there too.’”

Published on November 11, 2024 at 10:26 pm