In this episode of Everything Evanston, The Daily talks to Stepping Out on Faith Consignment Shop. It has been part of the Evanston community for over a decade and its founder, Vivian Killebrew, is an important part of the Evanston community.
[Orrington Avenue natural sound]
SHAE LAKE: For the last 15 years and counting, if you walk along Orrington Avenue, you’ll stumble across a set of clothing racks on the sidewalk, displaying a wide variety of clothes and accessories.
Behind the racks is the entrance to Stepping Out on Faith Consignment Shop, a pink, bubbly store run by Vivian Killebrew.
She is the store’s founder, owner, sales clerk, bookkeeper and housekeeper all rolled into one. According to her, it takes…
VIVIAN KILLEBREW: A lot of prayer and a lot of energy and a lot of coffee.
SHAE LAKE: From The Daily Northwestern, I’m Shae Lake. This is Everything Evanston, a podcast covering all things Evanston.
[music]
SHAE LAKE: Killebrew began her career in the clothing industry at Marshall Field’s and Macy’s, where she worked for a total of 38 years.
She said she was shocked by how large clothing chains marked up the costs of their clothing.
She added that at the same time, she dreamed of starting her own store. Killebrew’s husband, Ronald Killebrew, supported her dream by touring possible locations for her to open a shop.
But in 2008, he got sick.
VIVIAN KILLEBREW: And then when Ronnie died, he says to me, before he died, he says to me, “You got to promise me that you will open your shop and you will step out on faith, because people will come and you will be a success.”
And just to appease him and keep him happy and keep his mouth shut, I said, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I will.”
SHAE LAKE: Killebrew’s husband passed away, leaving her a single mother of three children. One of them didn’t forget the promise Killebrew made to her husband.
VIVIAN KILLEBREW: My oldest daughter says to me, she says, “Mom, are you gonna open your shop? Because,” she says, “If, you know, if you don’t open your shop, Dad’s gonna come back and haunt you.”
I said to her, “You are absolutely right.”
SHAE LAKE: Killebrew has faced many challenges during her time running Stepping Out on Faith. One of the largest was the COVID-19 pandemic, which almost shut the store down completely.
However, Killebrew still felt the support of the Evanston community. Even while the shop was closed for a few months, Killebrew would find encouraging letters slipped under her door, she said.
VIVIAN KILLEBREW: I remember one day I had a really bad day. I was just not, not feeling it, and I had a young guy come in and say, “You know, I’m so glad you’re still here. This is my favorite store, and you’re always so nice and so positive.”
That really kind of got me out of it. I said, “Okay now, put your big girl pants on. Let’s do this.”
SHAE LAKE: Killebrew’s business has become an Evanston staple, despite the fast turnover of many other businesses in Downtown Evanston.
Her sister, Jacqueline Coats, said Killebrew always stays determined in tough circumstances.
JACQUELINE COATS: She has a strong faith, and she doesn’t take no for an answer.
SHAE LAKE: Killebrew has also formed many connections with her customers.
Evanston resident Kirsten D’Aurelio, was looking to donate a blouse early in the pandemic, and a friend recommended Stepping Out on Faith.
When D’Aurelio arrived and asked if she could donate more clothes, Killebrew explained that she was overwhelmed with donated clothing that she needed to sort through.
KIRSTEN D’AURELIO: I called her back later that day and said, “You know, if you would like a volunteer to help you sort through some of those clothes, I would be more than happy to help.”
To my great surprise, she said “Sure, that would be great,” and that was the start of what is now an almost five year friendship.
SHAE LAKE: D’Aurelio said that Killebrew has made many contributions to the community. For instance, Killebrew works to provide clothing to unhoused people, and at one point she drove to Oak Park to hand out clothes to bused immigrants, D’Aurelio added.
KIRSTEN D’AURELIO: She almost has sort of a kind of ministry going because she sees the dignity in everyone.
[music]
SHAE LAKE: From The Daily Northwestern, I’m Shae Lake. Thanks for listening to another episode of Everything Evanston. This episode was reported and produced by Shae Lake. The audio editor is Isabella Jacob. The multimedia managing editors are Anavi Prakash, Misha Manjuran Oberoi and Danny O’Grady. The editor in chief is Lily Ogburn.
Our theme music is “Revolution” by Xennial, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License and provided by the Free Music Archive.
Follow us on X and Instagram @thedailynu.
Email: [email protected]
Related Stories:
—A college student’s guide to Evanston’s second-hand shops
—Little Gems brings thrifted children’s clothing to Evanston
—Everything Evanston: Partners of the Evanston Public Library hosts open mic poetry reading for National Poetry Month
