People drop off all sorts of items for the St. Ann's Bazaar, which sells them to the public each summer from an expanded tented area at the church.

People drop off all sorts of items for the St. Ann's Bazaar, which sells them to the public each summer from an expanded tented area at the church.

Most of the time, those who arrive at St. Ann Parish’s Annual Bazaar aren’t looking for anything in particular, but when they see the expansive selection — furniture, electronics, glassware, Christmas decorations, gift baskets and, this year, a car being raffled — they are often in awe.

“You can see the expression in their eyes, like, ‘Oh, my goodness.’ They just look at you. They say, ‘What is all this?’” bazaar Chairwoman Alexis Sclama said last week, as the 2022 bazaar drew to a close.

This year’s event — during the 50th anniversary of the founding of the parish in Bethany Beach — began with Premiere Night on Wednesday, Aug. 3, and the bazaar continued until early afternoon on Saturday, Aug. 6.

“It has been excellent. It is very popular,” Sclama said.

This year, the owner of Selbyville Holly Kia donated a 2023 Kia Sorento for the raffle. Tickets for the raffle are still for sale, and the drawing will be during this year’s Bethany Beach Jazz Funeral, on Labor Day. Call the church office at (302) 539-6449 for more information.

Planning for the annual bazaar started months ago.

“I pull the teams together in February,” said Sclama, who has been chairwoman for six years. Before arranging items, volunteers clean them, including the upholstery on chairs and sofas.

Afterward, anything not sold is donated to the Christian Storehouse in Millsboro or Teen Challenge in Seaford.

“It’s a lot of fun. I love it. I think it’s such a wonderful opportunity for all the volunteers and all the community to come together,” the chairwoman said, adding that when St. Ann opened as a new church, there were 78 parishioners. Today, there are 4,850 active members.

Over the years, more space has been added for bazaar items, with outdoor tents to hold the merchandise.

“A lot of rentals in this area are furnished and the owners are changing hands, so the new owners have to do something with the furniture. A lot of people who moved here during COVID have upgraded their living spaces and thought, ‘It’s time to get rid of that couch’ or ‘It’s time to get rid of that dresser’ because they want to freshen it up,” she said.

Also available in the overflowing inventory were pieces of Waterford crystal, a Waterford lamp, bicycles, candles, fishing poles, skates, tennis racquets, tools, wristwatches, mirrors, scarves, sofas, bedroom sets, tables, golf bags, bookbags, bicycle helmets, lamps and toys.

Every year, there’s what Sclama called “a quirky item,” and this year it was an old-time telephone, probably from around 1918, with a crank on the side.

“Two weeks later, we got a second one,” she said with a laugh.

The Kitchen Room, with glasses, dishes and kitchenware, is popular, she said, as is the Christmas Room, filled with decorations.

A favorite spot is the snack area, where sausage and peppers were for sale, along with pork barbecue, hotdogs, coffee and doughnuts, bags of snacks and sodas.

Church member Kathy Haworth made round cookies in the shape of pizzas and arranged them in tiny pizza boxes.

“It was a big seller. She is very clever,” Sclama said.

At a bazaar a couple years ago, Haworth created specialty cupcakes shaped like hotdogs and hamburgers with artfully formed “cheese” and “lettuce.”

Most years, 1,500 to 2,000 people attend the bazaar, coming from local towns, as well as from Maine, California and Florida, to visit the area and attend the bazaar.

In past years, the bazaar has raised around $100,000, and proceeds have been used for projects including repaving the church parking lot and upgrading the HVAC system. Sclama said she didn’t yet know how much was raised this year.

“It’s amazing what we have every year at the bazaar. This year we got a brand new grill. The owners never used it. They didn’t like it. They had already bought another one, and they said, ‘When the new one comes, we’ll give this one to St. Ann for the bazaar,” she said.

“The people who come like how organized it is, how beautiful everything looks and how friendly all the volunteers are,” she said.

“We hear people say, as they roam around, that they are absolutely amazed.”

Veteran news reporter Susan Canfora has written for many newspapers and held positions ranging from managing editor to her favorite, news reporter. She joined the Coastal Point in June 2019. She teaches college writing, tutors and professionally edits.

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The Coastal Point is a local newspaper published each Friday and distributed in the Bethany Beach, South Bethany, Fenwick Island, Ocean View, Millville, Dagsboro, Frankford, Selbyville, Millsboro, Long Neck and Georgetown, Delaware areas.