When Grande Cache (Alta.) United first started holding monthly garage sales in its basement more than a decade ago, nobody expected a huge turnout.

The idea was simple: sell donated items, bring people into the church and raise some money for the small congregation. But the project has now become a permanent fixture and one of the church’s most visible ministries, extending its presence well beyond Sunday worship in the community of just over 3,000.

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“We didn’t think it’d work,” says Carol Burrill, manager of the Grande Cache United thrift store. “One minister that came in said, ‘You’ll never get enough donations in this small town.’” But the monthly sales were successful enough that the congregation decided to set up a........

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