There is nothing better than receiving a heartfelt birthday card in the mail, and that is exactly what happens for all the volunteers at the Aspen Thrift Shop.
Margie Musgraves was recruited by Carolyn Moore to volunteer at the Aspen Thrift Shop in 1997. Before long, she became a member of the board and served as secretary, recording the minutes of the monthly meetings. At the time, meetings were held at the shop, a cramped, single story building with a basement, both spaces overflowing with donations. In 2011, the board decided to send birthday cards with enclosed gift cards to volunteers as a way of saying thank you, and Margie offered to help. There were about 127 volunteers at the time. With an artistic background and having taken a calligraphy class in college, she began creating each card by hand. As the shop’s volunteer crew grew to well over 200 people, she eventually arranged to have the cards printed.
Toward the end of each month, Margie addresses the envelopes and encloses the gift cards for the following month. She then writes each recipient’s birth date in the spot where the stamp goes.
Margie explains, “I know where all the mailboxes are in Aspen, and I usually ride my bike to the one near my house. Between the post office’s processing time and my occasionally forgetting to check my stack of envelopes waiting to be mailed, hopefully, the cards arrive around your birthday!”
