Under a canopy of hanging lights, Re-Source board members Karen Wishart, left, and Craig Kauffman show some of the bathroom accessories available for customers. The Ninth Avenue store, which sells recycled building and remodeling supplies, has its grand reopening on Saturday. (Bil Bowden photo)

Re-Source York took a leap of faith and landed in North York.

The store, which sells donated building and home improvement supplies, moved to 161 E. Ninth Ave. in early January and is now ready for its grand reopening from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

The first 100 customers will receive gift bags, said Jeff Korkie, Re-Source York's director.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony is at 11 a.m. with the York County Economic Alliance, of which the store is a member, he said.

"We have a new customers, because for them it's a better location," he said. "We're near Route 30 and (Interstate) 83. We liked being downtown, but there are people in the county that probably would not have stopped at the store."

So far this year, sales are better than at this time last year, Korkie said.

The new space: Re-Source York has a large lot space that will allow it to host various outdoor activities for customers, including do-it-yourself workshops, he said.

At 14,000 square feet, the new building is slightly smaller than Re-Source York's previous site at 235 N. Beaver St. in York City. The store moved from that location in December, as the site was used in a building extension project for York Academy Regional Charter School.

Re-Source York -- which also has a furniture store at 405 Carlisle Ave. in the city -- is leasing the North York building with an option to buy, Korkie said.

Back on mission: Now that Re-Source York has settled in, the store also can resume its mission to benefit Bell Socialization Services Inc., which specializes in mental health, mental retardation and shelter services.

Bell, which oversees the store's management, also provides Re-Source York job training and employment to participants in Bell's Mental Health Vocation Rehabilitation Program, said Averie Clark, the organization's community relations and development director.

About 30 participants have been hired at Re-Source York since the store opened in 2002, she said. The store also benefits the environment by accepting and reselling hundreds of tons of items that otherwise would have been put in a landfill, Korkie said.

"We're a self-sustaining nonprofit," Korkie said. "We don't use grants, no bank loans, no line of credit. We just took a leap of faith, did what we could, and we're doing well financially."

-- Reach Eyana Adah McMillan at 505-5438 or emcmillan@yorkdispatch.com.