Thrift Cottage History

The Thrift Cottage appears architecturally distinct from all its Victorian-era family members on the church campus. The explanation that follows is history compiled from “Our First 100 Years,” a 1988 publication compiled by Elizabeth Huser, researched and augmented with personal anecdotes by Margaret “Peg” Luedtke, volunteer church archivist.

In 1947, Graham Memorial Presbyterian Church relocated a former World War II WAVE (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) barracks to the church campus at 1211 Tenth Street. It was repurposed and used for Sunday School. As the church congregation grew with multiple generations attending, the burgeoning children’s ministry outgrew the former barracks. In 1969, construction began on what is now the Center for Christian Education at 949 C Avenue, and the barracks became a storage building. 

Meanwhile, the idea of reselling good-quality used household items and apparel had become a popular trend. In the late 1950s, a Coronadoan named Regina Turner repurposed her home into a used-clothing resale shop—called Tots and Teens—on Ninth Street, across the street from Christ Episcopal Church. When she  ended her business, Graham Memorial Presbyterian Church took over the operation and renamed it Thrift Cottage, a subtle reference to the denomination’s Scottish heritage. To increase visibility, the church moved the shop to a storefront location on Orange Avenue. But in 1982, the Pacific Bell Telephone Company bought the building, and the Thrift Cottage lost its lease.

Re-enter the WAVES barracks/storage building. Church volunteers spent that summer emptying and cleaning the building, and then moving the store contents from Orange Avenue. The Thrift Cottage reopened its Tenth Street doors to the public on January 24, 1983, where it continues its over a half century resale operation in its historic building.