Kickoff sale of hotel furniture today at Volunteers of America thrift store

The Volunteers of America are holding a kickoff sale today at their thrift store, 1010 N. Atlantic St., to sell off a large stock of hotel furniture.

The furniture includes mirrors, mattresses, night stands and desks and is a donation from Tomlinson Black Realtors.

The real estate company’s latest project is the reconstruction of the former Ridpath Hotel’s Executive Court on First Avenue, which is being turned into City Place condominiums.

The Ridpath furniture was given to five volunteer and charitable organizations in the Spokane area: VOA, the Union Gospel Mission on East Trent Avenue, American Red Cross on West Nora Avenue, Catholic Charities on West Riverside Avenue and Lutheran Community Services Northwest in Spokane Valley.

The goal is that the profit made from the furniture sales will be divided among all five organizations.

VOA Development Director Brenda Hunter has been working with Tomlinson Black on the project since April.

“We were extremely excited and very thankful that (Tomlinson Black) thought about supporting local charities in the area and chose the five agencies,” she said.

The Union Gospel Mission also took a large portion of the donated furniture to sell at its thrift store, Classy Rack. But the sale was in June, and Hunter says VOA was hoping to have a sale closer to the time when college students are returning to campuses and are in the market for furniture.