FRESNO, Calif. ( KSEE/KGPE ) – A newly opened Fresno thrift store is the foundation of a non-profit designed to help the people who help the public. Resuscitated Marketplace and Thrift Boutique supports the Paramedic Resilience Society, which supports current and former paramedics and EMTs who face unforeseen financial challenges.
“The idea was to be able to provide for those first responders in the private sector, the paramedics and EMTs,” said founder Kimberly D’Amico.
Since opening in August, D’Amico’s thrift store at the Bullard and Marks Shopping Center (3087 W. Bullard Avenue) has worked with more than a dozen vendors to raise funds for first responders in the private sector.
As a former EMT of 34 years, D’Amico says she understands the struggle of being a first responder, especially in the private sector.
“When I first started, I was 19,” D’Amico said. “About that time I found myself in a situation where I didn’t have a place to live.”
According to D’Amico, the majority of her shifts were 24 hours with a two-hour commute. At the end of most of her days, she had just enough money for gas.