A Coila man who has dedicated his life to helping victims of crimes and domestic violence get back on their feet recently opened a thrift store to aid in his efforts to open transitional housing.
Alonzo Lewis II said while holding a yard sale, the idea came to him to open a thrift store.
“After the sale, we did okay. And it hit me, I said ‘You know what? We should turn this building into a thrift store.’”
He said after telling his son and brothers about his idea, everyone was excited and on board.
The grand opening for the Coila Crossroads Thrift Store was 8 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 24.
“I said ‘This is it.’ We began to clean the building up, sweep and things of that nature and I said we’re going to buy some clothing racks, we can’t just pile them up.”
He said a trip to Greenwood led to 10 free double sided racks, racks that usually cost over $200 were given to Lewis for free.
“I found them in back of a grocery store. I asked the owner and he said I could get them all. Ended up 10 double sided clothes racks for free. I felt like it was God saying ‘Yeah, you’re on the right track.’”
Lewis said the racks are now “…practically full of clothes.”
“We didn’t buy anything. We were given a lot of stuff free. We came back from Greenwood with three truckloads. A lot of stuff God placed in our laps.”
He said the thrift store will benefit his nonprofit C.O.I.L.A., which stands for Community Organization International Leadership Association. Before returning back to Coila to take care of his mother, Lewis worked as a probation and parole officer in Alabama.
After he returned home, he worked in Tchula as a victim’s advocate for eight years. He said he holds his national license as a victim’s advocate and wanted to continue working with victims. Lewis said he wants to provide a safe haven for those who may not be able to get away, which led to the beginning of C.O.I.L.A.
Lewis said so many victims have nowhere to go and return to the abuser because they need a place to stay. He said he wants to build transitional housing to ensure there is somewhere to go after leaving.
“Transitional housing would be for a year to two years max. That’s enough time to get themselves together, get a GED, get a job and make more of an informed choice and decision.”
He said the transitional housing will be named “Kytarra’s Oasis.”
“It’s named after my daughter who in 1996 committed suicide, named in honor of her. Because it’s not only to assist victims of crimes but assist victims who’ve contemplated suicide and people who harm themselves. I found that when people are going through a lot they tend to cut themselves, females especially, when they go through a lot of things in life, they tend to harm themselves. It’s amazing what emotions can make a human do.”
Lewis said the thrift store is located just 6.5 miles south of Highway 82 on Highway 17 on the left hand side. He said the store is still taking donations.
“We do accept donations and we welcome donations. We take furniture, appliances, clothing and shoes. If you have something to donate, give us a call at 662-385-6223 and we’ll come by and pick it up.”
