Check out this cool neighborhood nonprofit organization

Have you been keeping your eye out for a special piece of vintage furniture or home decor? Or, do you have furniture in your condo that you'd like to donate to a great cause? Or maybe you've been looking for a unique, local volunteer opportunity?

Look no further. If you have never taken a walk down to the Hope Furnishings Store, it is well worth the trip. Located at 117 Puyallup Ave., just a few blocks south of The Esplanade, the store is the retail side of the Northwest Furniture Bank. The retail store has an eclectic mix of new furniture and retro chic items. This is definitely not your typical, sad used furniture store. In fact, every day, updates to "The Esplanade News" are typed into the computer from the comfort of the classy-hipster leather armchair pictured at right, purchased from - you guessed it - the Hope Furnishings Store.

Around the back side of the store is the Northwest Furniture Bank. Proceeds from the store and donated furniture is provided to families in need from the furniture bank. Esplanade resident Shoko Yoshikawa volunteers a few days a month at the furniture bank. "If you have any old or unused furniture, please consider donating," Yoshikawa said. 

She explained that as families move through social service programs and transitional housing that helps them get back on their feet, they often move with little or nothing. Many can barely afford housing and food, let alone a bed to sleep on or a table to sit at. Furniture is a basic need that determines how people feel about themselves, and also how well they will perform in the workplace or at school, Yoshikawa said.

For more information on the retail store, the furniture bank, or volunteer opportunities, visit the website: http://www.nwfurniturebank.org.