Big Brothers and Big Sisters opens donation center

By Rebecca Keister
PBN Staff Writer

MIDDLETOWN – Big Brothers and Big Sisters of the Ocean State is opening a new donation center on Aquidneck Island that will serve Middletown, Portsmouth, Newport and neighboring communities.

The center will be located in the Airport Plaza at 1341 West Main Road, Middletown. A grand opening ceremony is scheduled for May 11.

“Opening [this facility] is an exciting step for our agency,” said Deb Saunders, BBBSOS executive director. “The residents in these communities have been enthusiastically supportive of our mission for years, and we are thrilled to be able to provide them with a location that will not only be a more convenient place to drop off donations of gently used clothing and other items, but will also bring us closer to many of the constituents we serve.”

The new center will accept donations of, in addition to clothing, small household items, books, toys, and home décor items, and then sell the collected items through its retail partner, Savers. Proceeds are then used to fund the agency’s mentoring programs.

This is the second such centered opened in the state. The other is located next to the agency’s headquarters in Cranston.