While many working adults dream of a leisurely retirement with the grandkids close by or traveling the globe to see faraway places, Charles “Chuck” Davenport and his wife, Darlyn, have turned their back on retirement to restore the lifeless Connie’s Closet secondhand store into a booming shop with two locations.
“I don’t like retirement,” Chuck said. “I tried it, more than once. It’s fun for a couple weeks, then it gets boring. I don’t consider ‘work’ work.”
The Davenports moved to Point Loma in 1994 from Mission Hills. Together they have owned more than 35 companies since 1971, including SeaWest WindPower, a company that sells and installs windmills. Though they sold the business last year, it remains close at heart.
Instead of lounging about during their free time, the Davenports decided to put their restless energy toward a good cause. It was through her volunteer efforts with local nonprofits that Darlyn discovered Vista Hill’s desperate need to revive its dying thrift store.
Founded in 1957, Vista Hill serves children and families with developmental disabilities, mental health issues and substance abuse concerns. Darlyn has volunteered with Vista Hill since 2000 and serves on its board of trustees.
“It comes down to simple economics,” said Vista Hill CEO Rob Dean. “The expenses were running much higher than the revenue.”
Darlyn explained that Vista Hill had decided to close down the La Mesa shop and look for a new location at the same time as another of her nonprofit employers, Senior Community Centers (SCC), was contemplating opening up a thrift shop of its own.
Darlyn has worked with SCC since 1998 and currently serves on its board of directors. SCC is a nonprofit social service agency that provides free meals and care to homeless and very low-income seniors.
“I suggested that perhaps if the two of them went together and pool their resources that maybe we could make a go of it,” Darlyn said.
In 2002, Chuck helped find a new location in North Park at 3081 University Ave., but the move could not keep Connie’s Closet afloat.
“When we finally opened, we were all excited,” Darlyn said. “Then we realized we were running it the same way we ran it before and we were still losing money.”
In 2004, Chuck stepped in to share his business savvy, establishing procedures and rules designed to get the volunteers to view the shop as more than just a charity.
“It was really a business, which gave its money to charity,” Chuck said.
Instead of stocking what Darlyn referred to as “leftovers from people’s houses,” Chuck began networking with board members, friends and estate liquidators to create daily pick-ups. These timely pick-ups would not have been feasible, though, without the Davenport’s donation of two trucks and two trailers.
That same year, Connie’s Closet was renamed Windmill Thrift Shop in honor of the Davenports contribution to the store and previous line of work.
“The success of the Windmill Thrift Shop is so clearly attributable to Chuck and Darlyn’s involvement,” Dean said.
Windmill opened a second location at 315 16th St. in 2005.
In recent years, the Windmill shops have raised more than $36,000 annually for Vista Hill and SCC, and the Davenport’s are not stopping any time soon. Both volunteer more than 40 hours a week “” Chuck at the downtown store and Darlyn at the North Park location, where she maintains the book nook and keeps the store clean and tidy.
Paul Downey, president and CEO of SCC, said the couple’s commitment to service during their retirement stands out to him.
“I think what is incredible is that the Davenports are people who could do anything they want,” Downey said. “They are doing it simply because they are passionate and are concerned about the population that both organizations serve.”
The North Park location of Windmill Thrift Shops is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call (619) 291-2451.