Adriana Cortina checks out some of the bargains at the IWC garage sale. Pulse News Mexico photo/Thérèse Margolis

By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS

From vintage Oscar de la Renta designer sweaters and recycled UPPABaby strollers to Godzilla-sized candlesticks and gold-sparkled Mickey Mouse ears, there was something for every taste at the International Women’s Club (IWC) charity garage sale on Friday, Oct. 8, and Saturday, Oct. 9.

More than 5,000 items of toys, book and gently-worn garments — all donated by IWC members, present and past — were sold at the Union Church auditorium in Colonia Lomas de Chapultepec during the two-day event, the club’s first rummage sale in more than two years.

“Because of the covid-19 pandemic, we had to postpone the garage sale, which we usually hold every six months to raise money for our four main charities (the Hogar Las Nieves home for abused girls, the Albergue Inés María shelter for economically disadvantaged girls, the Fundación Ora center for underprivileged seniors, and the Guadalupe Victoria de Atizapán Maternity Hospital),” explained IWC co-vice president for operations Judy Kim as she wrapped several items of baby clothing and carefully tucked them into a bag for one of the sale’s first customers on Friday.

“So we have a lot more things to sell this time around.”

Kim went on to explain that since many foreign families left Mexico suddenly at the start of the pandemic, they ended up donating whatever they had left in their homes to be sold.

“As a result, we have a real hodgepodge of treasures to be discovered,” added IWC president Kirsten Harty.

“Consequently, I think that we are going to raise even more money then we did with our last garage sale, back in the fall of 2019, when we raised over $4,000,” said Kim.

Founded in 1977 as the Newcomers Club, the IWC is a nonprofit social and service organization made up of mostly foreigners living in Mexico.