Alexis Grace Consignments - Worcester, MA

I discovered a great consignment shop today, called Alexis Grace Consignment. I never would have found this place because it's located in a convenient but out-of-the-way location. What do I mean by that? Well, it's conveniently located right in Worcester in what I think is the Green Island neighborhood. But it's a street I would never go down otherwise. (7 Harrison Street, not far from Kelley Square) Today I was searching for some products by Worcester soap and candle-maker Melanie Paradise of "A Fragrant Paradise" - I had heard that Alexis Grace carries her line of products.

The minute I walked into Alexis Grace I knew I'd like it. It was attractively designed and, unlike so many other consignment shops, the tables and displays were not smooshed together. The spacious and lovely store made looking at the clothing, jewelry and other products a real pleasure. And the low prices were an even greater pleasure!

The co-owner, Mary, had a mug on her counter from which a wonderful hazelnut coffee smell emanated. When I approached, I did a double-take. "Your coffee's on fire!" I joked. Sure enough, it was a candle made by A Fragrant Paradise. If you can get past the idea of flames in your coffee cup, you will LOVE these candles. They smell so good; the entire room fills with the wonderful gourmet-coffee scents! I picked one up for my mother-in-law for Christmas. It's an attractive mug with a candle that looks like coffee with a pouf of whipped cream on top, and it's only $12.95.

If you like consigment shops you will love this one. There's even a back room where out-of-season bargains can be found. Parking can be found on the street OR in a little parking lot directly across the street from the shop.

Urban gardening & Youth employment program

I heard about this local program here in Worcester, Mass., and am mentioning it here because it sounds very worthwhile. I hope you will read on... (this is a condensed version of the writeup I received):

"Pernet Family Health Services is a neighborhood-based home health and
social service agency with a commitment to supporting families to be
physically, socially, psychologically, and spiritually whole. The
agency has been serving the Green Island region of Worcester, MA since
1968. This summer, Pernet received funding to create part-time
summer jobs for underprivileged youth. Pernet has decided to use its
youth employment program to fund the creation of a community garden
and install container flower beds throughout the area's small business
district.

Why Youth Gardening?

Pernet chose to create The Green Island Garden because...

1. The garden will bring healthy, affordable, organic food to the
people of Green Island, helping to eradicate food insecurity and
malnourishment.
2. Community gardens offer space for citizens to socialize and bond
with one another, fostering a stronger and healthier social fabric.
3. Community gardens localize the food industry, reducing both the
price of people's food and the city's carbon footprint created by
imported products.

The Youth Program

Pernet's youth employment program is one piece of a city-wide
initiative to give underprivileged youth access to part-time summer
jobs. Any youth (ages 14-21) that qualifies for free school lunch or,
for those youth not in school, meets other income-based requirements,
is eligible for the program. Various organizations throughout the city
have been given the responsibility of placing youth into employment
situations.

Pernet seeks to involve the Green Island neighborhood in this project
as much as possible. We will be selling low-cost shares in the
community garden to its neighbors, guaranteeing them a portion of the
harvest throughout the summer. We will also be sponsoring community
events. The first such event will be on Saturday, June 21st from
8am-3pm, during which time we will be raising the garden beds while
enjoying live music from Melo-Deego and free food from local
restaurants."

I've edited the writeup because the information provided to me was quite lengthy. But it sounds terrific and that is why I wanted to put in a good word here. For More Information, call Lizzy Fox at (508) 755-1228 or email her at lfox@pernetfamilyhealth.org