Casa Mesita refers to two separate

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

organizations in Los Alamos, New Mexico. Casa Mesita Thrift Shop and Casa Mesita Group Home are two of many social enterprise organizations in Los Alamos County, one of the

highest-income counties in the United States There are 3,144 counties and county-equivalents in the United States. The source of the data is the U.S. Census Bureau and the data is current as of the indicated year. Independent cities are considered county-equivalent by the Census Bureau. ...

, in a state with household income far below the national median.

Casa Mesita Thrift Shop

Casa Mesita Thrift Shop (NMSCC 0833772, Casa Mesita Thrift Shop Inc.) is a

organization that operates a thrift shop for the purpose of supporting a group home for girls. The thrift shop sells donated, mostly used goods. The organization is 100% volunteer run; it has no employees and pays no salaries and no wages. At times, the thrift shop has paid casual labor to transport unsellable items to the municipal landfill. The thrift shop benefits society by providing: *significant financial and other support to Casa Mesita Group Home *urgently needed clothing and household items to local families in distress due to fires and other catastrophes *surplus donations to deserving clients of other local non-profit organizations *additional surplus donations to Clothes for Kids, Salvation Army, an orphanage in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, and other non-profit organizations *an efficient, socially and environmentally responsible way for donors to discard usable material goods *high quality goods at low cost to residents of Los Alamos and the surrounding area *greater variety of retail shopping in Los Alamos In 2005, Casa Mesita Thrift Shop purchased a larger single-family house for the group home. The thrift shop was also the owner of the previous house that had been occupied by the group home. The group home pays no rent to the thrift shop. Also in 2005, the thrift shop moved from its long-term location in a garage on a back street (15th Street) to a storefront facing the local supermarket across a parking lot (Meri Mac shopping plaza between Trinity and Central). The new location increased traffic to the thrift shop but meant that the thrift shop no longer could accept as many donations of bulkier items such as couches, major household appliances (

white goods A major appliance, also known as a large domestic appliance or large electric appliance or simply a large appliance, large domestic, or large electric, is a non-portable or semi-portable machine used for routine housekeeping tasks such as cookin ...

), construction materials, and moving boxes. Alternative solutions for major appliances and construction materials include giving them away through the Los Alamos chapter of

Freecycle The Freecycle Network (TFN, or Freecycle) is a private, nonprofit organization registered in Arizona, US and is a charity in the United Kingdom. TFN coordinates a worldwide network of "gifting" groups to divert reusable goods from landfills. The ...

, and donating them to Habitat for Humanity ReStores in Española and Santa Fe. The Española ReStore has a drop-off location in Los Alamos. Cardboard moving boxes in very good condition can be passed on to others via Freecycle or by calling local real estate agencies. A local package shipper, UPEX, accepts donations of used foam peanuts. Casa Mesita sells books about cooking, crafts, home repair, health, general reference, popular novels, and children's books. Other books can be donated at

Mesa Public Library Mesa Public Library is the Los Alamos branch of the Los Alamos County Library System in New Mexico, United States. The library collection has more than 160,000 items which include books, CDs, DVDs, original paintings, and material in several fore ...

, where the Friends of the Library Bookstore accepts many used books for resale and an informal free book swap operates in the library lobby. Laboratory equipment can be sold or donated to

Ed Grothus Edward Bernard Grothus (June 28, 1923 – February 12, 2009) was an American machinist and technician at the Los Alamos National Laboratory during the 1950s and 1960s. In later life he became the owner of a surplus store which he used as a b ...

's laboratory surplus shop, The Black Hole. In 2009, Casa Mesita re-opened its doors to young girls in need, after being closed for two years due to lack of state funding.

Casa Mesita Group Home

Casa Mesita Group Home (NMSCC 0724302, Casa Mesita Inc.) is a group home for up to 8 girls aged 12–18,New Mexico Juvenile Justice Program Inventory
founded in 1972Casa Mesita: A special place to call home
Los Alamos Monitor (newspaper) story 12 December 2005. to shelter girls in need of a safe place to live. It is a United Way agency.

References

External links

VolunteerMatch
web page for Casa Mesita Thrift Shop
ReStores in New Mexico
{{Coord, 35, 52, 49.9, N, 106, 17, 40.2, W, display=title Social enterprises Children's charities based in the United States Social work organizations in the United States Charities based in New Mexico Los Alamos, New Mexico