Mesquite Showgirls Hold Rummage Sale

By AMY DAVIS

The Progress

The aroma of BBQ and the sounds of music drifting through the hot desert air set the mood for the first annual Rummage Sale hosted by the Mesquite Showgirls organization. On Saturday morning, Sept 11, community members flocked to the Mesquite Rec Center dressed for warm weather and ready to shop for a good cause from 10 different vendors.

The morning began with a word of prayer from Pastor Ross Doyle, the pledge of allegiance, some words from Mayor Al Litman and a moment of silence to commemorate 9/11. While most community members attended the event early in the morning to beat the heat, a steady stream of traffic filtered in throughout the day.

“The showgirls have organized this rummage sale day to raise money and awareness for the different organizations that are here today,” said showgirl Linda Gault. “We are trying to raise money for our organization. These funds allow us to go into the public to do our community service activities.”

“I think everyone is having a good time,” Gault added. “I think the music adds so much to the atmosphere.”

The vendors and entertainers present included Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue, Smoke ‘N Grind, Cancer Society, Mesquite Women’s History and Cultural Center, POE, the Quintessential Woodwind Quartet and more.

The Off the Rails Band performed in the morning and Mike Rye performed at noon.

Mesquite Showgirls President Becky Boyd said that she got the idea for the rummage sale while she was out for a walk.

“I was walking around the new 5-mile path the city built and I thought this would be the perfect place for a farmer’s market,” Boyd said.

Gault said that she hopes this will be the first of many rummages sales put on by the organization.
“We would like to keep this going and grow it every year,” she said. “We may have to look at a different time of the year, though, because it is so extremely hot.”

Mary Grace is the office manager for the Cancer Help Society. They rely solely on donations to help the people in Virgin Valley.

“We help people through their cancer journey,” Grace said. “A lot of the stress from cancer is not just physical, it’s financial and emotional as well. We help pay for fuel and prescriptions, we help with radiation, chemo, diagnostic imaging. We can’t pay bills in full, but we can really help to ease the financial burden.”

“We have support groups and all of these donations – no matter how small – really do help,” Grace added. “We are so happy to be here today.”

Mary Mallet, has been a showgirl for a year now. She was selling t-shirts for a dollar at her booth.
“I love being a showgirl!” she said. “We have a ball and we do a lot of good work for the city of Mesquite for new business coming into town and old business that are already here.”