Month: February 2022

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Thrifting in Grove City

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As a typical college student, you may not have an exorbitant amount of money to spend at the Grove City Outlets or other stores in the Mercer County area. Thrift stores are a great way to be able to get new clothes while barely spending any money, and it is also a great way to support local businesses.  In this blog, I am going to list some of the best thrift stores in the area, and some recommendations for stores in the Pittsburgh area.

  • Salvation Army: This is a Grove City College staple. Usually referred to as “Salvo,” it is a great place to get some quality clothes at a really good price. They will restock the new items on Thursday afternoons, so that is always the best day to go. Also, there are deals on Wednesdays, which is a fantastic way to get cheap clothes for an even cheaper price. Salvation Army is a great store that encourages you to give to a good cause.
  • All Good Things: This is a much smaller thrift store right across the street from Memorial Park. It is a nonprofit organization that has a great selection of clothing and other items. They have great vintage clothes and there is a building in the back that has old furniture which is great for furnishing your dorm room.
  • Thrifty Threads: This is the closest thrift store to campus. It is located right on South Center Street, and it is by Coffaro’s, a pizza shop that is home of the college special. It also very cheap for clothes there, though you may have to do some digging because they have a large selection of clothes, but you will definitely find some quality items.

These are the top thrift stores in Grove City, however if you have a car you can go down to Butler you will find more stores. For example, there is a Salvation Army, Goodwill, and some other small business thrift stores that have great character and you can find some great items. I highly recommend going to thrift stores in the area; it is a great way to find cheap clothes that look great, while supporting local small businesses!

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From Roommate to Life Long Friend

Ever since I was young I wanted a brother. I was still lucky to have a sister, and as I have gotten older, I have become much closer to her, which I have cherished. While I loved growing up with a sister I wanted a brother to play catch, ride bikes, and scrape my knees with. I never had that and dearly longed for it, especially as I got older and began to face new challenges in my life.

Fast forward to my senior year in high school, and it’s time to pick a roommate. Picking a roommate is quite honestly one of the closest things to a shot in the dark you can encounter.  There is an immense sense of pressure when deciding to live with someone. Doubts begin to flood in: does the person like the room cold or warm? Does he like to stay up late or go to bed early? Is he clean or messy? Living with someone slowly becomes the scariest challenge college has to offer and you are not even on campus yet.

My experience is much different than what I had expected. I expected to change roommates a couple times into college in order to find the right fit. My assumption was completely wrong. Throughout the past three years I can finally say that I have the brother I always wished I had. The fears of living with someone quickly diminished as I began to grow closer and develop a genuine friendship. As a senior in my second semester, I am beginning to reminisce on my time at Grove City College, and I have begun to realize that my most valuable takeaway from Grove City will not be my degree but the life long friend and brother I know I will have in Jack.

I am blessed beyond belief to have someone that I know I can trust and help me through the darkest times in life and celebrate in life’s most joyful moments. I can confidently say that I would not be where I am in my life without the help and guidance that I have been given. I understand that I got extremely lucky finding someone that I was completely compatible with. And the harsh reality is maybe you will not get as lucky the first try. But to prospective students, if Grove City College is your future home, developing relationships to people here is the most valuable thing you will get from your time in college. While some might disagree, I can confidently say that I have the brother I always wanted and a friend until the day I die.

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My Experience with Orientation Board

Imagine this: You are driving up to Grove City College for move-in day, but you are feeling butterflies in your stomach. You are sitting in the car, nervous about meeting people, making friends, and starting classes. As you pull up to your dorm building, a group of white T-shirts swarm your car, shouting in excitement. They start to unpack your car and carry all of your bins and suitcases to your dorm room. They wait around for you to walk into your dorm room and pray over you for success and joy through the semester. When your parents leave, you spend the next few days meeting upperclassmen and fellow freshmen, participating in social gatherings, sports, movie nights, and other activities.

That was my experience when I came to Grove City College. Orientation Board (OB) helped me get familiar with the campus and with meeting new people. They also helped me get to know upperclassmen in my major, to help give me an idea of what my classes would be like, as well as the professors. After seeing how involved Orientation Board was with incoming freshmen, and the group as a whole, I decided I wanted to do it.

Through the process of joining OB, we did retreats and meetings to grow closer together and hear the “why” behind everyone’s decision to join. Orientation Board is a big group, divided into different committees. Each committee has different tasks and events they put on for the freshmen. I was on the Religion Committee, which included Sunrise Service, Worship Night, Praying Sessions, etc. One of my favorite events that OB did before the freshmen arrived was the Prayer Walk. We each walked around on campus, to each building, and prayed over it and prayed for the incoming freshmen. An event that I helped organize was All-Campus Worship. My team and I put together a group of student musicians to lead worship and read Scripture. Seeing all of the OB members and the campus come together to worship helped remind me that Jesus is changing our hearts daily and we are serving Him through helping others. I think it also helped many of the freshmen know that Jesus is the one constant thing in our lives and we should lean on Him to help us through the semester.

Orientation Board has helped me step out of my comfort zone and meet so many people – some of which are now my closest friends. OB has push me in my relationship with Christ, while serving others and having a fun time. Overall, it has been an amazing experience to be apart of Orientation Board, and I cannot wait to do it again next year.

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How I Chose Grove City College

Being the youngest of four, I got to watch all of my siblings decide on which college they would attend. Whenever someone asked me where I wanted to go to school or what major I wanted to pursue, I always said, “I do not know yet…maybe a big school.” In the back of my head, I thought I would go to Penn State University, but little did I realize I wanted to go for the wrong reasons. I wanted to go there not because of the different majors they offered, but because my brother was there and I would be close to him. The one school I never thought to look at was Grove City College because of the reputation it had: being a strict Christian college with challenging academics. My dad was the one who kept bringing up Grove City College, and I finally agreed to tour the campus.

When I toured Grove City College, I kept thinking “too small, too close to home.” My tour was in June of 2019 and the campus was dead with no students there. After my tour, I kept thinking of all the negatives and was not giving the College a chance. That was, until I decided to do an overnight stay in October of 2019. When I stayed overnight, I finally got to “see” the College. I sat in classes as a prospective student and talked to professors and students about their experience. I also got a chance to see events that were going on with fraternities and sororities. My view of Grove City started to change, and I started to consider it a top option. After I got home from my overnight visit, all I could think about was the excitement and fun I had while I was there. I filled my parents in on my trip and after talking to them, I knew I wanted to go to Grove City. The people at Grove City want you to be there, and they want to help you in any way they can, academically or socially.

The funny thing about choosing a college is that you may think you want a big school, but you may actually want a small school and vice versa. I know that Grove City College is not the school for everyone, but to some it feels like home. Ever since I was accepted and came here, I have felt a sense of peace I could not imagine experiencing at another school. The Christian environment and sense of community at Grove City makes you feel like you are at home.

Here are some of my tips when visiting Grove City College:

  1. Sit in different classes to get an idea of college classes
  2. Talk to professors and students in the majors you are interested in
    1. They are honest with you about academics but they also get to know you
  3. Stay overnight, especially in one of the dorms, if you can.
    1. You will get a feel for how college is and can help see if you like the atmosphere and environment at Grove City
  4. Explore the town of Grove City, and see what is around!