After 50 years and nearly as many sales at the Bethlehem Municipal Ice Rink, the cancer charity heretofore known as Boutique at the Rink is relocating to St. Luke’s SportsPlex in South Whitehall Township for its 2025 sale. City officials are left with good memories of their longtime association as the multiday fundraiser becomes “Boutique for Hope” and its leadership pursues plans for growth.

In 2014, Boutique volunteer Pat Lowman compiled decades’ worth of memories, facts, figures and photos to create a book celebrating the 40th anniversary of the event. Among the changes over the years were the city building a roof over the rink (1998, during which year the Boutique did not operate), the main sale moving from the fall to the spring when hockey teams began using the rink (2002), and the city began charging a rental fee for use of the rink (2011).

Donation drop-off schedules varied as volunteer availability changed. Acceptable donations changed as household goods and toys were deemed suitable or unsuitable. Different public and private organizations gave time and donated everything from fixtures to beverages for volunteers.

Through it all, a spirit of cooperation prevailed.

“Over the years, there could have been issues that caused some logistical things to be done in a way that wasn’t ideal [for the city or the Boutique],” recalls city engineer Michael Alkhal, “but we’ve always been able to work through them.”

City of Bethlehem Recreation Director Jodi Evans, who worked closely with Boutique volunteers and coordinators for the past five years, shares her colleague’s view.

“Every year, it has been a good experience,” Evans says, noting that last year, the city’s youth football organization allowed the use of its parking lot for the shuttle that St. Luke’s provided for volunteers, freeing up parking at the rink lot for Boutique patrons.

Room to grow

The Press spoke with volunteers past and present and found that the chief reasons for the location switch were the larger on-site parking lots, greater indoor square footage and superior amenities at the SportsPlex.

According to St. Luke’s Senior Development Event Producer Lori Coursen, the lot directly in front of the building has more than 300 parking spots, with additional parking in the lot closer to the outdoor courts. Grassy areas can accommodate “a few hundred” additional vehicles. Coursen notes that the SportsPlex has hosted 1,000 guests during pickleball and wrestling tournaments, for which on-site parking was sufficient.

Marie Jordan, who started the Boutique’s toys and games department 21 years ago with fellow volunteer Pat d’Italia and her mother, admits that the new location is a less appealing drive for her.

“I live 10 minutes from the rink,” she says; however, she is excited to return for another sale. “I drive everywhere, and [Route] 22 does not bother me. I know the back roads.”

Jordan emphasizes the increased comfort for Boutique patrons and volunteers that will come with the move. St. Luke’s has allotted three “bays,” each of which is as large as a basketball court, which will allow the Boutique to take place entirely indoors in a climate-controlled environment. Restrooms at the SportsPlex – which formerly housed the Parkland Pickleball Club and the Lehigh Valley Racquet & Fitness Center and was completely renovated by St. Luke’s in 2023 – are also more numerous and modern than those at the Bethlehem Municipal Rink.

“The leadership team is happy,” Jordan says with some levity, “because they had to clean the bathrooms [at the rink], and now there’s a cleaning crew [at the SportsPlex].”

On a serious note, she explains, “The big thing is the space, the amount of parking out front, and the birds were getting to be a problem […] Visitors complained about allergies.” She also recalls very hot days when the mats outside the rink buckled in the heat, causing some patrons to trip and sustain injuries.

Carol Jacoby, who co-chaired the Boutique in 2019 and remained on the leadership team afterward, echoes Jordan’s concern about the birds. She recalls working with other volunteers to cover literally everything with sheets every night, and returning to find sheets and floors covered with bird droppings. As an open-air facility – a roof covers only the skating surface – it is subject to heat, cold, windy rainstorms, and nesting barn swallows, making multiday storage of vast numbers of items challenging.

The Boutique has grown over its 50 years. In 2024, more than 350 people volunteered to set up, sort donations, and staff the sale itself. That year, the group raised more than $360,000, disbursing donations to Cancer Support Community of the Greater Lehigh Valley, St. Luke’s Cancer Center, and St. Luke’s Hospice. Organizers hope that fewer physical limitations will allow it to grow further.

“We’ve been bursting at the seams these past few years,” explains Boutique organizer Barbara Vinci.

Jacoby agrees.

“We’ve been talking for several years about the fact that we seem to be outgrowing the rink,” she says, noting that unfortunately some volunteers were not informed of the venue change in the timely manner that the leadership team intended, due to the existence of multiple email lists. Some volunteer couples reported that one spouse received the email, but the other did not.

“I can see how that would upset people,” Jacoby acknowledges, indicating that she informed the email list managers when volunteers voiced their concerns.

‘It’s my spring tradition’

As a Bethlehem resident, Evans will miss having the event just a short distance from her home, but she believes in the cause, and will continue both to shop at and donate to the Boutique.

“I live in Bethlehem, so the new location will not be as convenient for me,” she says, “but I’m still going to support it. Right now, I’m getting my winter stuff together, and I will put it in my car and drive wherever I have to drive, to donate it. It’s my spring tradition.”

Jordan shares that sentiment, observing that the Boutique is like a “mini-reunion” for the volunteers, many of whom do not see each other during the remainder of the year.

“Am I happy about driving all the way up to [Route] 309? No, but I’ll go,” she says. “We all have to experience new things.”

Although she wishes that the Boutique could have found a way to celebrate its 50th sale at the rink, Jacoby is optimistic about the new location. She hopes all-day volunteers will appreciate the comfort of standing on wooden floors instead of concrete, and adds, “We have the opportunity to tap into a whole new audience up there” in South Whitehall Township.

Donation days are May 21-24 and May 27-31. Sale days are June 11-14. Donations of clothing should be new, or gently used, and any donated glassware, flatware, or dishes should be complete sets. The location is the St. Luke’s SportsPlex at 4636 Crackersport Road in South Whitehall Township, near the intersection of routes 22 and 309. Individuals and groups interested in volunteering, donating or shopping are invited to call 610-861-7555, email info@boutiqueforhope.com, or visit the Boutique website (boutiqueforhope.com).