Farmington Hills

Shop for a cause at the Costick Center

By Tiffany Esshaki
C & G Staff Writer

» click to enlarge « Photo by Tiffany Esshaki Most of the items available for sale in Yvonne’s Treasures are priced under $10. The gift shop’s entire inventory comes from community donations. Photo by Tiffany Esshaki Most of the items available for sale in Yvonne’s Treasures are priced under $10. The gift shop’s entire inventory comes from community donations.

FARMINGTON HILLS  — Following a fresh coat of paint and some tweaks here and there, Yvonne’s Treasures, inside the Costick Center, has reopened with a new look and new items lining the store’s shelves.

Yvonne’s Treasures is a gift shop housed inside the Costick Center, with a variety of re-sale items available for purchase, from small knick-knacks to books, seasonal décor, jewelry and more. The shop is operated by volunteers and is stocked entirely with donated items so that all of the proceeds can be donated to help seniors in need within the Farmington-Farmington Hills area.

“We have people that come in for different classes who stop in. A few moms were in there the other day because their kids were at camp, so we get anybody, really,” said Teresa Jergovich, senior adult specialist at the Costick Center. “You never know what you’re going to find. Every time you go in there, it’s always different, and we’re keeping the money in our own city.”

According to Jergovich, Yvonne’s Treasures opened several years ago when Yvonne Singer, one of the founders of the Costick Center, came up with the idea of raising money to help seniors in the area with things they may need, such as household repairs, small bills and prescription medications.

Singer has since retired and moved to Arizona, but her daughter, Anne Marie Diakow, has followed in her mother’s footsteps and joined the senior adult division at the center. She said she’s happy to pick up where her mother left off, helping seniors and working to keep the gift shop open.

“She just wanted to have people donate items to the gift shop so that money could be raised for low-income seniors. Maybe to help cover the cost of a prescription or a utility, or maybe a household item they could use. That’s Mom. She thinks of those things, and that’s what she wanted, and it’s grown tremendously since she started it,” said Diakow.

Now that the shop has undergone a bit of a makeover, the shelves are ready to be packed with more items to sell. Jewelry, small fashion accessories — like purses, scarves and belts — pottery, china, glassware, books, DVDs, VHS tapes and more are all pieces that can be donated to the Costick Center to be sold at Yvonne’s Treasures.

Items can be dropped off at the center’s front desk, where tax-deduction forms are available for all contributions. Unfortunately, the center cannot accept clothing, toys, furniture or other large items. Jergovich said the shop works best when it’s stocked with small “treasures” sold at low prices.

“I think the most expensive thing in there right now is $8. Occasionally we’ll get a collectible, like a Precious Moments figure, that goes for $15. But we’re not out to make a profit; that’s not the point of the gift shop. My thing that I enjoy is that I’m able to keep the money in our own city and help seniors with an emergency need.”

Yvonne’s Treasures is located inside Building A of the Costick Center and is open 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday. For more information, call Teresa Jergovich at (248) 473-1826.

The Costick Center is located at 28600 11 Mile Road in Farmington Hills.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Tiffany Esshaki at tesshaki@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1095.