Community Yard Sale turns Harrisville into a treasure hunter’s paradise
HARRISVILLE — Bargain hunters took to driveways and sidewalks across Harrisville on Saturday, Sept. 13, as the community turned into a marketplace for its annual townwide yard sale.
The event gave residents the chance to declutter their homes while inviting interested shoppers to browse through everything from antiques and handmade goods to toys, tools, games and other household treasures.
“Harrisville is just such a nice little community, and it’s nice that they do things here,” said Pat McDougal, who has lived in the area since 1967. “I go to the fire hall, and they have dinners there, but I think everyone just looks forward to this.”
With dozens of sales spread throughout the borough, the daylong tradition brought neighbors together and drew visitors from surrounding communities eager to hunt for the right deal.
“I know some of the residents might not like the added traffic, but it’s just for a day,” said Cindy Fierst, who was selling a bevy of homemade decorations, games and other knickknacks. “I think a lot of folks do really utilize it to try and clean out extra things, and that’s exactly what we’re doing.”
Her sister, Pat Montgomery, shared those sentiments, pointing out that some people try to avoid paying skyrocketing prices for new items in various department stores.
“People always say to me, ‘I don’t want to pay for expensive kids’ clothes,’ so they look for clothes, books and other items during certain events like this.”
It’s also a chance for small businesses to turn a profit and for local churches like Harrisville United Methodist to raise necessary funds.
For the better part of the last decade, the church has sold sloppy joes, chips and soda to hungry residents and travelers alike. All of the proceeds go toward the church’s mission.
“We’ve been doing something every year since 2018, but I think it’s been going on for longer than that.” said pastor Ken Miller. “For awhile there, we also had a rummage sale in the basement where we had oodles of stuff. Now we just focus on selling food, but it’s always a great day.”
