Just in time for Spring cleaning, a new Goodwill Donation center popped up on Gray Highway.
Gabrielle Dawkins spoke to a man who says donation centers like this one provide job opportunities for many people in Central Georgia.
"You see the signs saying hiring or you see it on the website, but once they find out that you are a convicted felon, it's hard," says Edward Timley. "That alone is a big challenge."
When Timley got out of prison in 2011, he says Goodwill gave him an opportunity that he will never forget.
"I came home a week later, came to Goodwill, and I been at Goodwill ever since," says Timley.
For the past 7 years, he has worked as a custodian manager for Goodwill.
"It's a blessing, a big blessing for me," says Timley.
Vicki Mills, the Director of Marketing for Goodwill, says new donation centers like the one on Gray Highway will collect items that will be placed in retail stores where members in the community can purchase it and the proceeds help many in need.
"The profits earned from the sale of those goods provides career training education and job training for people in the middle Georgia community," says Mills.
This is the 14th donation center in the area, and they will hire four full-time employees for this store. Mills says in 2017, they helped 6,000 people in Central Georgia find jobs.
"This seems to be a little pocket area in the community that we did not have a convenient location," says Mills. "So we're trying to make it convenient for people to donate, and it's spring cleaning time, so the timing is perfect for everybody to clean out their closets."
They collect goods like books and clothing, but it leads the way for opportunity.
"No matter your circumstances, Goodwill is there for you to help you grow, and I'm a prime example," says Timley.
The store located at 908 Gray Highway will be open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Sunday from 12 p.m. until 6 p.m.