Community Yard Sale Generates Some Laughs and Dollars

By DONALD WITTKOWSKI Ann Taylor gestured toward all of the household goods and other items lining the driveway in front of her Sea Isle City home and declared, “Everything’s for sale.” Then she added the punchline: “Everything but my mother,” she said. Her mother, Betty Taylor, nodded her head in approval and joined her daughter in a laugh. The Taylors were among homeowners throughout Sea Isle taking part in the annual community yard sale that was canceled last year during the early stages of the pandemic but returned Saturday just in time for Mother’s Day weekend. Ann Taylor’s driveway at her vacation home on 51st Street was teeming with dishes, tables, clothes, bedding and even a seashore-themed chandelier. “A little bit of everything,” Betty Taylor pointed out. Betty Taylor, left, and her daughter, Ann Taylor, tidy up one of their tables containing items for sale. Ann Taylor was eager to make some money, but joked that there was no way she was parting with her mom a day before Mother’s Day. “One guy came here and said, ‘Do you have any fishing gear?’ I told him no. Then he said, ‘I’ll take her,’” Ann said, referring to her mother. “I told him she’s not for sale. She’s priceless.” Mothers were not for sale, of course, but the event allowed Sea Isle homeowners to clean out some of the bric-a-brac and clutter in their garages, closets and attics while making a little dough. They hoped to capitalize on the yard sale’s timing, coming on Mother’s Day weekend, a popular time for visitors heading to the shore for getaway trips. Pam Fullerton, joined by her husband, Larry, at their home on 68th Street, estimated that she had made $300 through Saturday morning. Among the items she had sold were wicker furniture, jewelry and a child’s painting easel. “I spent 40 hours bringing things back and forth, cleaning and labeling,” Pam Fullerton explained of all the work she did to prepare for the yard sale. One homeowner uses a bright orange sign to advertise the yard sale. Charles Fortescue browsed through a collection of CDs the Fullertons were selling and found some classic rock that interested him. He paid $1 for the Rolling Stones’ “Hot Rocks” CD. “I may already have this, but it’s good to have another one in the car just in case,” Fortescue, who lives in Norristown, Pa., said of the Rolling Stones CD. Throughout town, bargain hunters hovered over tables laden with everything from valuable family heirlooms to just plain junk in hopes of finding something special at a great price. Laraine and Barry Nickel, a married couple from Ocean View, were able to buy some Craftsman tools, signs and pictures. “We’ve done pretty good,” Laraine said. “We’re buying some things to spruce up the beach home.” Not quite sure that they were done buying, Barry looked at Laraine and said, “What else do we need? Anything for the beach?” Then they browsed some more. Peggy Moore shows her husband, Terry, a framed picture they have up for sale at their 58th Street home. Peggy and Terry Moore, homeowners on 58th Street, were selling an assortment of household goods, homemade golf clubs and a miniature weather station, among myriad other things. “We’re not using any of this stuff, so we might as well sell it,” Peggy noted. The Moores were ready to welcome buyers to their house as soon as the yard sale began at 7 a.m. “I think we made our first dollar by 7:05,” Terry said. The first item they sold was a Sea Isle-themed sign.