As we “Baby-Boomers” find ourselves reminiscing about stories from our past, I personally have learned to accept my son Miles’ initial response, “Oh, is this going to be another back-in-the-day story, Mom?” Well, here goes Miles and all of those reading this story at this moment.
Way, way, way “back in the day,” the 16th century to be exact, sailors would stow and arrange cargo in the ship's hold initially to make more room for other things. Once the ships reached the port, any unclaimed, surplus, or slightly damaged cargo was sold off at a discount directly on the wharf, becoming known as a "romage sale."
The spelling of this “practical and beneficial” event evolved by the 1800s to "rummage sale," and soon thereafter, churches and charities began using "rummage sales" to raise funds by selling donated, second-hand household goods to the public.
Fast forward to the 21st century, and you may be surprised to learn that just down the street from the shores of beautiful Lake Minnetonka sits the single most successful rummage sale! This sale, which has been hosted by the Wayzata Community Church located at 125 Wayzata Blvd, Wayzata, MN 55391, for the past 104 years, grossed $200,000 in 2025! This year’s event just may prove to be even more successful than ever.
With 300-400 volunteers gathering, sorting and manning the 23 departments, co-directors Bill and Barb Boulware have been running a tight but fun ship for the past twenty years. “The quality of the items is well above average and is displayed in approximately 100,000 square feet,” says Bill. He continued, “We have seen interest grow significantly amongst teenage volunteers and college-aged shoppers. This year we had approximately 25-40 teens volunteering. Boys seem to want to man the electronics department while many of our teenage girls enjoy helping in the clothing, jewelry, and accessories department. After ten hours of volunteering each year, our helpers are rewarded by being able to shop for themselves one day prior to the doors opening to the public.”
During this interview, I learned something about the high schools in our area. When I asked why the Boulwares thought that interest amongst teens had grown significantly, they said, “Most of the high schools in the western burbs make it mandatory that prior to graduation each graduate must have performed 20 hours of volunteer work within a community.”
How cool is that? After all, as adults we look to our schools for teaching our children not only academics, but good sportsmanship and good behavior gained by getting along with their classmates. Now we can thank our schools for initiating a program that teaches our kids a greater sense of being a better humanitarian for their future endeavors. Clearly a “win-win” scenario.
June is typically the month when most of the gathering of items begins. The public is invited to donate items and to participate as volunteers whether they are members of Wayzata Community Church or not. Once the two-day sale, which is held in the middle of July, is over, I wondered what happens to everything that didn’t sell?
“We have a list of organizations and charities in the immediate area that we contact to schedule a time for them to come in and take whatever they want or need over a period of ten days,” says Bill. This system is just another way that the Wayzata Community Rummage Sale is so beneficial to so many Minnesotans. When it comes to deciding which charities will directly benefit from the net sales of the rummage sale, that’s a task for the church’s Mission and Outreach Board Committee to decide how the funds are to be funneled each year.
If you are not a fan of crowds, you may not want to shop at next year's extravaganza. However, if you like the feeling of a festival-like environment where you can’t help but see hundreds of smiles from volunteers and shoppers, this event is so worth it. Sure, there won’t be games to play or rides to experience, but your dollars spent can be your way of “paying it forward.” So, “Aye aye Captain, full speed ahead, and I’ll see you next year at the Wayzata Community Rummage sale!