This spring, Big Valley Thrift & Gift made a historic $20,000 gift to Valley View’s Benevolent Fund.

As part of Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), the thrift store donates to support needs around the world and very close to home – organizations like Shelter Services, Crossroads Pregnancy Center, and the Allensville Fire Company – and Valley View’s Benevolent Fund.

The donation reflects the thrift store’s mission to share God’s love and compassion both locally and around the world, and it also is testament to the deep connection that the store has had with Valley View across the decades.

“At the January board meeting, I asked whether we had ever given to the Benevolent Fund,” Big Valley Thrift & Gift secretary Michelle Byler explained. “So, we decided to make a gift.”

Michelle said that the Benevolent Fund at Valley View is personal to her. Her husband’s grandparents were residents at Valley View, and his grandmother was a recipient of the Benevolent Fund for a time. Her aunt, Mary Ella Saner, was a long‑time nurse in the Haven as well as a resident. And another aunt, Sarah Ann Graybill, lives in the Terrace today.

“We have to take care of our elderly,” she said. “In many other nursing homes, once funds run out, they have to leave. It’s important that they have a place to be.”
The donation is part of a long history between Valley View and Big Valley Thrift & Gift. Over 20 percent of the thrift store’s volunteer workforce comes from Valley View Village, with 27 residents donating their time at the cash register and throughout the store.

She says that Valley View volunteers are quick to help out and bring a vital positivity to the shop. “They might be the only exposure to Jesus that some of our customers ever see – that’s what people see when they come to the thrift store.”

Marlin Maclay is one of those volunteers. In 2024, Marlin and his wife Karen moved to Valley View Village from Chambersburg…. And they got busy.
The couple volunteers in multiple committees across Valley View’s campus, and Marlin is also involved with the Belleville Lions Club. For him, volunteering at the thrift store, and recently beginning to serve on its board, has been a perfect way to reconnect with his hometown.

“We were gone for 42 years, and getting out in the community has helped me to reconnect with the people who I knew from back then,” he said.
He said that after working their whole lives, he and his wife feel blessed and want to share with other people. Volunteering alongside other Villagers has been both fulfilling and fun. “We feel like we have a second family here – it’s like being on a college campus again,” he said.

And as he prepares for another Saturday morning, running the cash register at the thrift shop with fellow Villager (and volunteer) Bruce Buffington working beside him, he offers advice on getting plugged in to the greater community.

“Find something that you are passionate about, then be proactive and do it. Don’t sit back and wait to be asked – pursue it and then enjoy it.”
And for him, that’s at a place that is filled with good finds, generosity, and camaraderie.

Michelle agrees. “We support the community that supports us, and it’s a fun place to be. We will always take more volunteers!”

This article is part of our Spring/Summer 2026 Newsletter. You can read the rest of this issue here.