As the sun rises over Westnedge Hill, families set up tables and haul out boxes from the depths of their basements. They assemble racks of clothing, carts of shoes and even boxes full of unwanted items emblazoned with a “free” sign. It’s the first Saturday in May, which means that it’s time for the Westnedge Hill garage sales. 

The garage sales stretch across the entire neighborhood, from University Ave. to Burdick St.

 Once the clock strikes 9 a.m., navigating through the neighborhood by car becomes nearly impossible. Parked cars line both sides of the streets, while families dart back and forth through the commotion. For this reason, it’s important to set up sales and start shopping early. 

Minchie Brockman, a secretary at Loy Norrix, has participated in garage sales nearly every year that she’s lived in the neighborhood. She’s observed that the garage sales seem to become even more popular each year, attracting more people outside of the Westnedge Hill community. 

“There are people that keep coming back. They’re like, ‘oh, we bought clothes from you back when my kids were sophomores,’ and I’m like, ‘that’s crazy!'” said Brockman.

Connections like these are essential to the garage sales, making them an important community event. Over the years, Brockman has watched neighbors’ kids grow up alongside her own children. Garage sales act as a time capsule for past trends and fads, making them very sentimental.

“We’ve been selling lots of Pokémon cards,” said Brockman. “That was a big seller. In a past year, we sold the BeyBlades, when they were really popular.”

As families prepare for garage sale day, it’s important for them to identify what no longer has any value to them. For sophomore Henry Fuerst, this was his old bicycle, which he sold for five dollars. His family also determined that the two pairs of snowshoes they had kept were no longer necessary, leading to a humorous interaction with a potential customer.

“There were some snowshoes, a big pair and a little pair,” said Fuerst. “Sold those. I had no idea what he [the shopper] wanted to buy: he couldn’t decide whether he wanted to say ‘pairs,’ referring to both of the snowshoes, or just a pair of snowshoes.”

Although neither item was particularly important to Fuerst, the garage sales still featured many significant bargains. This year, Brockman parted with several old toys that had a special emotional significance to her family. 

“We sold the Calico Critters, that was hard,” said Brockman.

However, despite their sentimental value, Brockman recognized the importance of letting go of one’s belongings. Giving items away gives them a chance to be a part of someone else’s life.

It was mostly somebody else’s treasures,” said Brockman. “It’s easy to let things go.”