At Skylight Vintage, Etc. on Sherman Avenue, shoppers can browse items ranging from vintage cameras to funky fur coats — all while supporting affordable mental health care for Chicago area residents.

The Skylight Foundation, a nonprofit established in 2019 that provides low-cost and free mental health counseling to people in financial need, opened its pop-up shop in Evanston on March 18.

Angelica Klow, executive director of the Skylight Foundation, said the pop-up store operates on a volunteer basis with all proceeds going toward the foundation, which compensates therapists who provide low- and no-cost mental health services in private practice settings.

The structure allows therapists to offer long-term, quality health care to low-income or underinsured patients while receiving payment for their time, Klow said.

“The hope was to model for other private therapy practices to really think about, ‘Well, how do we offer more free mental health counseling in a private setting?’” Klow said.

Demand for Skylight Foundation services “skyrocketed” during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading the organization to consider additional funding streams. Klow said she began selling vintage goods on Facebook Marketplace and hosted several yard sales at her home to compensate therapists at private practices.

Following early success with the sales, the foundation decided to search for a more permanent space to sell vintage goods. The pop-up shop was initially located in a church classroom in Skokie before setting up shop in Evanston.

Evanston resident Monique Fourie has been a frequent shopper at Skylight Vintage, Etc. pop-up shops since 2021. Since then, Fourie said she has purchased a variety of vintage goods there ranging from paperweights to decorative plates.

“(Vintage shopping) creates a sense of wonderment, astonishment and joy when you find something that you didn’t know you were looking for,” Fourie said.

Fourie said she continues to support the pop-up because she believes in the foundation’s mission, especially after witnessing the pandemic’s effect on the mental health of members in their own community.

Similarly, Iden Nowlin views the pop-up shop as a “win-win” since it repurposes household goods and reuses estate cleanout goods, which she appreciates.

“It helps to sort of bring some brightness to an otherwise sad time for the family and the people who are donating the items,” Nowlin said. “But then also you can help provide services for people who need someone to talk to when they are going through a rough time.”

Klow said COVID-19 exposed strains on mental health services and revealed the need for more therapists. The World Health Organization reported that in the first year of the pandemic, the global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by 25%.

Klow said she hopes that the vintage pop-up shop will help the foundation pay more therapists to treat low-income patients, while also promoting community with its central location.

“Something was lost during the pandemic, and that was connection. I have felt that in doing this, we’re putting it back together, reestablishing that connection,” Klow said.

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