When she came to Neepawa as an economic development officer 17 years ago, Amanda Naughton-Gale couldn’t have imagined the path her life would take from there. After subsequent stints as television station manager and retail manager, she landed at the Neepawa Community Ministries Centre just over eight years ago. With an educational background in sociology and rural development, she says she loves the opportunity to impact people’s lives and impact her community.

“It’s a really great meld of some of my past experiences,” says Naughton-Gale. She calls the position the best of both worlds, because she manages a small retail location but also runs the food bank and social programs. The centre expanded from a cramped former church a few years ago into its current location, which has space for all of its operations.

The thrift store is the financial backbone of the centre, with all money raised going back in to fund operations including the food bank but also programs such as cooking classes for children and adults, nutrition information, and financial workshops. Naughton-Gale says they receive very little money from government sources, and then only to fund specific projects or programs.

Naughton-Gale’s experience and expertise with antiques and collectibles started young, going to auction sales with her father, and only grew from there. It helps her now to be able to identify these items and highlight them when they come into the thrift store, and price them appropriately. One of the keys, she says, is to have enough passion and curiosity to wonder where items come from and do the research on them.

Long-term, looking a few years down the road, she would like to see the centre expand its family services, both to diversify what it offers and also be able to offer programs on a more consistent basis.

“We really see people at their most vulnerable when they come for help,” says Naughton-Gale. “A lot of times they’re either in financial stresses or maybe they’re in a domestic situation that they need help with. … We want to be able to provide programming that will fully support people to do better and reach their goals in their life.”