About Us

Nu-To-Yu Community Thrift Store opened its doors in 1983 as a project of the Pender Island Community Service Society (PICSS). Its purpose was simple but powerful: raise funds for local health care. The store’s playful name “Nu-To-Yu” captured the spirit of giving items a second life.

What started with just 15 volunteers and a handful of donations quickly became a cornerstone of Pender Island life. Every dollar earned was channeled back into community well-being.

Since the 1980s, Nu-To-Yu has lived inside Pender Island’s historic 1902 one-room schoolhouse. Built with lumber milled on the island, the school was erected on land donated by early settler James Auchterlonie, and for decades it was the heart of education on South Pender. Generations of island children learned their lessons here, warmed by a woodstove in winter and gathering for community events in the evenings.

When a new school was eventually built elsewhere, the “Old School” was left standing empty. In 1983, it found new life when the Crown granted the property for community use, and the building was reborn as a play school, a community art studio, a storage space for Solstice Theatre and eventually the home of Nu-To-Yu.

From that moment on, the schoolhouse has been filled not with chalk and slates, but with second-hand treasures and the laughter of bargain-hunters. The building’s creaking floors and cozy rooms became as much a part of the thrift shop’s identity as the finds themselves. Over the years, volunteers expanded into every nook and cranny, with “upstairs” and “downstairs” sections and even a patchwork of sheds and lean-tos added outside to keep up with donations.

Islanders often say the store wouldn’t feel the same anywhere else: the smell of old wood, the sunlight through century-old windows, and the sense of history underfoot make shopping here a true Pender experience. Since 2004, visitors have been greeted by Tin Lizzy, our whimsical metal sculpture mascot, standing proudly at the door as a reminder that reuse and creativity go hand-in-hand. Tin Lizzy was cleaned and restored by her creator, Steeve Larouche and will re-appear at special events until our new store is ready to move into.

From those early days supporting health care, Nu-To-Yu’s mission expanded. Over the decades, the store has funded:

By 2024, over $1.5 million had been raised and given back to Pender Island. All from low-cost treasures: a 10¢ book, a $2 toaster, or a $5 jacket, proof that small contributions add up to something extraordinary.