Tote bags littered Britton Plaza on Wednesday evening as groups of self-identified “thrifters” gathered for the Night of Local Thrifts, hosted by the Center for Sustainability Education (CSE). Students poured inside of two local thrift stores, C-Luv and Lifework’s Marketplace, in search of the perfect find. Spirits were high throughout the night, with arms full of shirts, pants, scarves, dishes and stuffed animals proving the thrifting scores of many.
As the first of its kind, this introductory event showed Dickinson students just one of the ways to live sustainably on campus while also supporting their love for fashion. C-Luv Thrift, run by Mary Carlton and George Kretzing, has supported Carlisle and its community members for over five years. Having grown up in Carlisle, the co-owners were drawn back to their beloved hometown with two goals: to make a difference and to keep themselves busy.
In February of 2019, they opened C-LuvTthrift to do their “little part,” and it has only flourished since. In an interview with the two, Mary expressed that, at the time, “there were no good thrift stores in Carlisle.” Interested teenagers and adults alike were left to travel to Mechanicsburg or even Harrisburg for opportunities to shop second-hand, making C-Luv’s opening a welcome addition to the community and its sustainable future.
The thrift store prides themselves on being 100 percent sustainable. Not only do they offer a second life to quality items at an affordable price, but they also uniquely make use of items they cannot sell, whether they are damaged, stained or overly worn.
“The things that we can’t sell go to three different places. We either send them to our Family Life [Center], or Community Cares around the corner, and then we have a couple from Mechanicsburg that come … [They] take everything we have, and they bring it to a Native American reservation in Oklahoma.” The couple’s emphasis and efforts towards sustainability do not go unnoticed, and neither should your role in it, they insist.
The co-owners closed off their thoughts with an overwhelming gratitude towards Dickinson College and its students: “Thank goodness for Dickinson. I don’t know how else to say it,” said Kretzing. Mary and George repeatedly expressed their joy at working in a college town and offer many opportunities throughout the year to connect students to the community. This includes an upcoming event with Jessica’s Closet to collect and offer formal dresses that would otherwise “retire” after one or two uses. The store has a sign-up sheet if you or a group of friends are interested in donating or volunteering.
The Dickinsonians were especially ecstatic during this night on the town, sifting through racks for up to an hour and patiently waiting in the 15-person-long checkout lines to secure their treasures. Two students, Alex Tes ’28 and Adina Ament ’28, explained their love for thrifting while in line for the dressing room. “It feels nice to find something that is truly unique,” Tes recounts, “It’s like, I worked hard to find this piece of clothing.” She also mentioned how she upcycles her finds, making them her own.
Ament claimed she started thrifting to combat overconsumption and fast fashion, which runs rampant with the popularity of microtrends: “When I’m buying something, I’m buying second-hand. I don’t have to worry about it.” One of values that were heard repeatedly from students was their conscientiousness when it came to ethically sourcing their clothing and accessories. James Foley ’28 said, “It is easy to get sucked into the too-good-to-be-true, cheaply made pieces promoted on social media. But we need to break the cycle.”
The party eventually migrated to the summer’s newly opened Lifework’s Marketplace; a nonprofit organization run by New Life Church. The Marketplace hosts donated home décor and appliances in a homey, two-room spread. The profits received go back to the church, who puts it back into the community by providing furniture and decorations for those in need.
Chris Durant, a volunteer at Lifeworks, reported that with the profit made so far from the Marketplace, 300 new mattresses were purchased to give out to the community. Designed to help individuals achieve “economic self-sufficiency,” Lifeworks has already taken off as an incredible resource for the Carlisle community.
Ultimately, it is impossible to talk about the booming success of this thrift night without mentioning the organization and individuals behind it at the Center for Sustainability Education. The Center, founded in 2008, aims to “lead and enable the development of sustainability as a defining characteristic of a Dickinson education.” Ming Robinson ’25 orchestrated the event in partnership with CSE. “The event was a huge success, especially because of the freshmen,” she explained.
Cara Kamoie ’26, affiliated with waste minimization at CSE, claimed that the turnout was likely reaching triple digits, which for an event as the first of its kind, is significant. The CSE hosts multiple thrifting events such as pop-up events with C-Luv, donation drives for the thrifts, the Free Xchange in the basement of the HUB and partnerships with other local businesses, among countless other events aimed towards students. One new shop to look out for, named Ecoasis, promotes a low-waste lifestyle as a “refillery,” where soaps and other bulk-stocked household products are sold by weight. Dickinson students get a 10% discount, and don’t forget to BYOJ (Bring Your Own Jar)!
Living a sustainable life is not limited to just thrifting, though. “Check how much waste you’re producing,” Robinson pointed out in an interview, “You have to consider where you are buying from, and how much you are buying.” She also suggested bringing personal cups to the Biblio, Juice Bar and Denim Coffee, who will all use them in replacement of paper and plastic. Sustainability is truly a community effort, and through events like the “Night of Local Thrifts,” Dickinson students are brought together to make a difference in, and strengthen, Carlisle’s and Dickinson’s commitment to a sustainable future.
