Praise

I wanted to share some of the really, really nice positive reinforcement I received from neighbors before and after the sale. After all my concerns while I was handing out the flyers at the beginning, and wondering if it was a dumb idea to organize a neighborhood sale, it turned out very well. My favorite part is how happy people were to connect with their neighbors and how much fun they had. (The weird thing, though, is that many of these people still have not signed up to be part of the neighborhood group. But that will probably be the subject of another post...)
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I just want to compliment you on the fantastic organizational job you have done on this multiple garage sale!!  We are looking forward to a fun and busy Saturday!   Thanks so much.

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...let me say you have garage sale sign swag. I have NEVER seen such kick A__ signs. Indestructable. [This compliment I passed on to the sign team.]

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I'm delighted that somebody is doing this: I'd never get it together to do a garage sale on my own.  I also think that the idea of a neighborhood association is terrific. 

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Thanks for doing all of this—amazing!  With appreciation!

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Thank you [Mrs. Aitch]!!! for the great idea and all the organization!
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Thanks so much for organizing this event.  My family had so much fun,  An added benefit was meeting neighbors we had never met.
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Thank you for all your hard work and thanks to the committee!  The garage sale was a huge success!
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Thanks for coordinating this!  Nice job.
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I would like to ditto all the kudos, this event would not have taken place if not for your initiative.  It was great to see such a buzz in the neighborhood and I had neighbors who did not sell, tell me how much fun they had walking to all the houses.

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We had a ball at the garage sale!  Thank you very, very much for your enthusiasm, for getting this group going and for all labor to organize and get out flyers!  You guys rock!  I can't wait for the next fun event!
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Thanks to everyone who were involved and participated in this HUGE garage sale. Special thanks to [Mrs. Aitch] and the planning committee.

Other than getting some extra money by selling some of our used and never-opened stuff, we met all kinds of "customers". It was fun talking to them and learning from them what they were looking for and that might help what we should put out for garage sale next time. 

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Thanks to all the planners...It was fun - and nice to meet all the new neighbors.

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The customers that I spoke with were so impressed with the sale, the maps, & all the stuff we had to offer. I was so busy, I never sat in my chair until 1p.m.! Thanks so much!

P.S. Many were already asking about next years sale:)
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Thanks to whoever made the maps! people were thrilled when we handed them to them!

The Garage Sale

The big garage sale was Saturday, and it was HUGE. We gave out maps with 26 homes marked on them, and other people were joining those sales, or putting stuff out to sell at their own houses. One street became jammed with traffic a couple of times. People made hundreds of dollars. Kids had lemonade stands, sold muffins and brownies, and played music to entertain customers. And, best of all, people got out of their houses and met their neighbors and had a lot of fun!

The day of the sale, I wanted to go shop at other people's sales, see how busy it was, and meet some of the people I'd been emailing with. So Dr. J agreed to man our sale while I ventured out.

My dad describes himself as "not a hale fellow well met," and that, you will not be surprised to hear, is a good description of me, too. First I went to a couple of sales of people I know a little, and they were so full of enthusiasm and so full of thanks and compliments, that I started to feel bolder about meeting some new people. So I would walk up to someone, and start off with "Hi, I'm [Mrs. Aitch]," and expect to segue into a mumbled explanation of who I am and why I was imposing on them by introducing myself, and they would break in to tell me how great it was to meet me, and how great the sale was, and how great the maps I made were, and how many customers they had had, etc. I felt like a rock star! And I would modestly imply that the weather was responsible for the turnout, and maybe tell them about how my kids were selling lemonade and then spending the money they earned buying the neighbors' toys, a story I found to be a real hit.

My confidence soared. By the end, I was encouraging people I'd never met to plan neighborhood events and offering to make web pages and flyers for them. And then I would say, "Well, I want to try to get to some more houses, so I'd better go." And we would say goodbye, and off I'd walk.