The Wood County Humane Society held its 22 annual garage sale this past weekend, an event that allows bargain shoppers and around 60 volunteers to help hundreds of homeless and abused animals.

The sale was held under the grandstands of the Wood County Fairgrounds, starting at 9 a.m. Thursday and ending at 12 p.m. Saturday. Shoppers gathered from all over the area to sort through hundreds of knick-knacks, house-hold items, clothing, furniture and even kittens.

Because of the vast number of donations, Wood Country residents and co-coordinators of the event, Joe Schroeder and Stephanie Ringler, said there is a lot of work and sleepless nights that go into putting on the sale, something they have been doing for the past eight years.

“We put in about 130 hours apiece,” Schroeder said. “By the time you add in all the volunteers, there’s got to be at least 5,000 hours of volunteer labor that goes into this.”

Ringler agreed, saying, “The last two years we just camped out here. We stop our whole lives and devote them to this.”

Stress and a multitude of man-hours are expected for such a large-scale event, an event that saw 236 people waiting at its doors Friday morning alone, Ringler said. But, after 22 years of annual events and a profit of over $185,000, both Ringler and Schroeder said what they really love is the camaraderie between them and the other devoted volunteers.

“We have the same volunteers that come in year after year, and then we get a couple new ones each year,” Schroeder said. “It’s like a big family; everyone sees each other for the first time again and there’s hugs, kisses, and it’s just really great.”

Although the event has been going on since 1992, Schroeder and Ringler said it gains popularity every year and is now a staple for the community.

Wood County resident Julie Amos heard about the sale in the local paper and was impressed in her first experience at the event.

“I wish I would’ve come sooner,” she said.

John Good, a resident from Fremont, Ohio, had similar thoughts about the event and said it was nice to see so many people donating to the cause.

One hundred percent of the sale’s earnings go to shelter operations and general care for the animals, which includes around 75 to 100 cats and dogs.

The shelter, established in 1904, “is a private, non-profit, no-kill 501 (c)(3) organization that is home to numerous, domesticated animals resulting from owner surrenders, strays and cruelty cases”, according to the shelter’s website.

Because there is only around $800 in costs to put on the event, Schroeder said the garage sale is the humane society’s second largest fundraising event.