Wheaton garage sale raises money to help kids in Ghana

Fresh from two weeks abroad in West Africa's Ghana, Wheaton resident Beth Johnson is hosting a sprawling garage sale this weekend at her home on Wheaton's west side.

"I just got back last Saturday," said Johnson, taking a quick break from readying clothing, toys, books and household goods for the sale tables.

The connection between her travels and her salesmanship is her involvement with a nonprofit humanitarian organization called Touch a Life Foundation.

The foundation rescues and cares for children who have been abused, neglected and forced into labor in countries such as Ghana, Vietnam and Cambodia.

The Friday and Saturday garage sale is a fundraiser for the Wheaton Find Your Mark chapter of the foundation. It's one of several fundraising chapters that hosts events to raise money to help children in difficult circumstances.

Johnson said the money raised at her Wheaton garage sale will help four children ages 16 to 18 who have been rescued from dangerous conditions in Ghana's fishing trade.

"Our goal is to raise $1,800 per child per year," Johnson said, explaining that this amount offsets the cost of providing for children housed at the organization's rehabilitation center.

"The center provides housing, clothing, education, art therapy, just about anything you could think of," she said.

The foundation was started in 1999 by Pam and Randy Cope, a couple from Missouri who had lost their 15-year-old son to an undiagnosed medical condition. The tragedy, Johnson said, catapulted them into a search for a meaningful way to honor his memory.

Johnson's daughter, Rachel Brown, is the Dallas-based foundation's director of project development.

"My daughter went to Pepperdine University in California and Pam was one of the speakers. My daughter met Pam and they talked and they clicked," said Johnson.

Johnson said she finds inspiration in the way the Copes turned their grief into such a positive force for change.

She is similarly impressed with the local community's generosity and enthusiasm for the Wheaton garage sale, which is celebrating its sixth year.

Four of her friends have been helping with organizing the sale, she said. And friends and neighbors have donated sale items, she said.

"There's a lot of stuff. All of our prices are really reasonable," she said, adding that any unsold items will be donated to local charities.

And while haggling at a garage sale is a time-honored tradition, not all garage sale shoppers are in search of bargains at this sale, Johnson said.

"Last year, people made monetary donations," she said. All proceeds benefit the Touch A Life Foundation, she said.