CAL has upscale retail store, not thrift shop

I'm writing in response to Dave Gunter's series on payday loans. The series is relevant and I had no idea the slippery slope a person could find themselves on. But I take great exception to Dave characterizing the Community Assistance League's Bizarre Bazaar shop as a "thrift" shop in the same vein as the dollar store or Goodwill. Show me the "thrift shop" where you can find such quality items as a fur coat, a Bob Mackie sweater or a Cuisinart Super Pro food processor on a regular basis!

Bizarre Bazaar is an upscale resale store whose entire mission is to give back to the community. I find it pleasantly ironic that the article sneers at BZB as a "thrift shop" preying on the public on page three of the paper, while on the back page we see CAL is trying to give that money back to the community through their grant process in the article "Community Assistance League grant applications available."

CAL supports, through Bizarre Bazaar, so many people and programs here, among them: Kinderhaven, Head Start, Panhandle Special Needs, Community Cancer Services, Bonner Partners in Care, Senior Meals on Wheels, city of Clark Fork, Sagle Fire Department and Kootenai and Sagle schools.

So, Dave and the Bee, I know you did not write the article to slam CAL and you have actually supported CAL well in the past, but the great ladies of the Community Assistance League work way too hard to have their efforts denigrated this way.

MATTHEW KERR

Sagle