Meet Susan Stromatt and Margie Bacile of Charity Guild Shop in Montrose

Today we’d like to introduce you to Susan Stromatt and Margie Bacile.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
The forerunner of the Charity Guild of Catholic Women began in 1922 when a group Catholic women gathered over lunch to discuss the problem of the growing number of needy children of Houston.

With a collection of $59 to establish a charity fund, these ladies began their work to help these children. At the request of a local Catholic pastor, their first project was the Mexican Free Clinic. They sewed layettes for families too poor to buy them for babies and gave financial support to the clinic which later became known as San Jose Clinic.

In 1940, the group adopted its formal name – Charity Guild of Catholic Women – and elected its first president. Meetings were held in members’ homes until 1952 when the first location of the Charity Guild Shop was purchased. Today’s location – 1203 Lovett, in the Montrose area, – is the third location for the shop each larger than the one before. Over the years and through the generosity of its members and several Foundations, the shop has increased in size and its ability to fund more children’s charities.

What started as a $59 charity fund, today provides an average of $400-500,000 annually, $550,000 was awarded in 2016 to assist children in need. San Jose Clinic remains a permanent focus. We give back-to-school, Christmas, and Easter parties for the children at the clinic. Members give books, supplies, underwear, socks for back-to-school, collect toys for about 400 children for Christmas, and make baskets of candy for Easter.

Today we entertain grant requests from other non-profits that are identified by our members and serve children in the Houston area without regard to race or creed. In February 2018, we will award grants to 46 such organizations. This is our proudest moment each year. Several organizations in the greater Houston Area have recognized the Charity Guild of Catholic Women in the last 15 years for its outstanding volunteerism and philanthropy.

The Charity Guild of Catholic Women volunteers is a multi-generational, multi-cultural, highly diverse group of women. Members volunteered over 96,000 hours for 2016-2017. Our members are former nurses, doctors, teachers, lawyers, CPAs, human resource specialists, bankers, IT specialists and other professionals. We are dedicated to building a better world through service to others resulting in benefiting Houston’s children in need.

Has it been a smooth road?
Our greatest challenge is staying current with shopping trends and social media. Fluctuations in the economy from time to time pose challenges, when the economy is down, more people are looking for quality bargains. Of course, we provide!!

We’d love to hear more about your business.
The resale shop, our pride, and joy, is staffed by over 500 member volunteers. Shop offerings gently used apparel for women, men and children, furniture and household items. Many of our items are brand name or designer names and sell at a great price. We welcome consignments and donations. We also offer for sale brand new and custom requested layettes and seasonal crafts created by our Lady Fingers committee.

Customers often comment on how well our merchandise is organized. We also receive feedback on the friendliness and helpfulness of volunteers. We make every effort to offer up-to-date merchandise that is good quality, clean, invitingly displayed and affordable. All of this provides an easy shopping experience.

Pricing:

• Unlike some other resale shops, a consignor receives 60% of the selling price if sold within 60 days from date priced

Contact Info:

• Address: 1203 Lovett Blvd. Houston, Texas 77006
• Website: charityguildshop.org
• Phone: 713-529-0995
• Email: shop.adminmgr@charityguildshop.org
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/charityguildshop
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/charityguildshop
• Yelp: www.yelp.com/biz/charity-guild-of-catholic-women-houston

Image Credit:
Anthony A. Hynes Photography, Elizabeth Fusilier-Hynes, Photographer, Emily White, Senior Design & Communication Specialist, San Jose Clinic

Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.