The Birth of Orphans Treasure Box
Orphans Treasure Box is a unique used bookstore. We sell donated books through various online platforms, like Amazon, Biblio and our own website store. Now, here’s the special part. Every month we give a good portion of our profits to missions serving vulnerable kids and orphans. But, we don’t just give money. We employ women coming out of addiction, prison, homelessness and domestic abuse. And, we love giving away books to underserved communities where access to quality books is scarce.
Orphans Treasure Box is a faith based organization but we don’t consider ourselves a typical Christian bookstore. You will find everything from Stephen King novels to Buddhist meditations in our inventory. In many ways, we look the same as any used bookstore. Where we are different is in our mission, the reason we exist: caring for vulnerable children and women needing a ReStart, just as we believe Christ would. By reflecting God’s love, we desire to be a light in this community and in our world. Everyone is welcome in our circle.
So, how did Orphans Treasure Box begin? Here’s our story.
Stumbled into it…
Yep, that is how I would describe it. Just wanted to clear clutter from the house, so I listed eight textbooks on Amazon, and sold four the same day. July 30, 2011. Nothing big.
But, God had other ideas…
For a few months, I toyed with the idea of building a consignment shop for books. But, that idea didn’t jazz me. Then I read Radical by David Platt. Somewhere in his challenge of following Jesus at all costs, I felt God tap me on the shoulder and say, “let’s do this.” Instantly, I saw a ministry impacting thousands of children…vulnerable children…orphans. Orphans Treasure Box was born.
So, what’s with the unique name? Orphans Treasure Box reminds us of the vulnerable children in the world and in our community. It also reminds us there is treasure all around, sometimes in a box of donated books, but always in people. When Christ walked this earth, He sought out those who others neglected. Often He healed and blessed them, but He also did something amazing. He chose them to bless others. We believe that everyone is made in the image of God and a treasure.
But, Orphans Treasure Box is more than a non-profit charity. It is also a bookstore, a business. Business statistics tell us that more than half of new businesses fail. We didn’t experience that. While we had to learn all the facets of bookselling, we felt God’s blessing and leading.
In our opening years…when most businesses struggle…we thrived. And, by God’s grace, we gave away a lot of money.
Enough to help 17 orphans become sons and daughters. Enough to fill the pantry of a Peruvian orphanage and buy them new mattresses. Enough to buy Christmas presents for orphans in Thailand. Enough to help foster kids in Champaign, Illinois through Project Sunshine. Enough to help build a transitional home for teenagers who aged out of the system in Peru. Enough to give grants to foster moms so they could do needed repairs around their homes. Enough to help 30 orphans in South Africa go to school for a year. Enough to buy back young girls sold into slavery in Cambodia. Enough to help local struggling moms, living on the edge.
When we moved to our location at Pioneer Street, our expenses did grow. But, through it all, our heart for mission has remained.
We still love to give away money to those in need, even in the midst of a pandemic. In the last year (2020-2021), we’ve helped children in Swaziland, Peru, Haiti and locally in Illinois. Buying new mattresses, necessary food items, new cribs, new pajamas, medical equipment, Christmas presents, a young boy’s schooling for a year, surgery for a little girl in Haiti, socks for teenagers on the streets of Chicago, counseling for young women coming out of sex trafficking, food packs through Feeding Our Kids and a business microloan for a widow wanting to support her children through International Justice Mission. In the pandemic, we also gave away over 10,000 books — many were kids books — to those communities who needed access to books most.
And, through ReStart, we’ve employed twenty-four women who truly needed a second chance. Women from Restoration Urban Ministries, Merci’s Refuge, Courage Connection, Illini Christian Ministries, halfway homes and other recovery centers have worked at the bookstore in the last six years. Over half the women we have employed have used their work with us as a bridge to finding full time employment and their own housing. Some have been able to reunite with their children after securing their own home, others have gone back to school or have worked their way up into management. We are proud of them and their accomplishments.
This is our core: With every child we value, every woman we hire and employ, we are saying God is with you. He has not forgotten. You are special. God loves you and is for you.
Beth Wendling
Founder, Orphans Treasure Box
