Graham Jaehnig/Daily Mining Gazette The Copper Country Autism Awareness summer long garage sale is open Monday, Tuesday Thursday and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., weather permitting. Funds will go towards summer programming by the group, specifically their outing at the Houghton County Fair.

ADAMS TOWNSHIP — Copper Country Autism Awareness Foundation secretary/treasurer, Gail Wagner-Frank, is conducting a summer-long garage sale to raise funds for the group’s activities, especially in securing family passes, food vouchers, ride passes for families to attend the Houghton County Fair in August.

The garage sale is located at Wagner-Frank’s home at 17343 Atlantic Ave., Atlantic Mine, and is a fundraiser, she said.

Garage sale hours will be Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m, weather permitting.

Wagner-Frank has a personal interest in CCAA: her granddaughter is a non-verbal, 13-year old child with autism.

“As secretary/treasurer of the organization,” she explained, “I see the need for us to raise funds for our one very, very important event that happens every year for the past 12 years we have been going to the Skerbeck carnival at the Houghton County Fair.”

The carnival’s management offers specific times and considerations for the children. They include a four-hour time slot on Friday morning. During that time, the colorful, flashing lights, along with the music, are turned down, which under normal circumstances can be terrible triggers for children with autism, Wagner-Frank said.

“They accommodate for us in that four-hour time slot,” she said. “And our families absolutely love it. We provide their entrance, we provide their wrist bands for unlimited rides, food vouchers. The only thing we can’t do is parking. Parking is a little crazy.”

The summer-long garage sale is new this year. In the past, she said, the organization has been able to apply for grants through a local agency, but this year, they are not offering summer grants.

“They will be able to help us in the fall for our fall events,” said Wagner-Frank, “but the summer grant is what helped us to pay for every family member that showed up, along with care-givers.”

Another popular activity is swimming.

“During the winter months,” Wagner-Frank said, “our local Holiday Inn opens up their pool space for three hours when the kids can swim.”

CCAA provides pizza and snacks, she said, and it is important, because these take place during the winter months when the children cannot get outside, and some of the families stay longer.

Most of the items offered at the garage sale have donated by eight local families who learned that Wagner-Frank was conducting the sale to raise funds for taking the children to the fair in August.

Donations, for the most part, include clothing – sizes from newborn to 5X, as well as miscellaneous items all for sale at $1 unless otherwise noted. Also, she said, the group has received support from Dealz 4 Days and hopes to provide support for the range of families they work with, more than 40, of both adults and children with Autism.

Wagner-Frank said anyone wishing to donate gently-used clothing or household items can drop them off at her home, which has a large, covered front entry.

She is also seeking volunteers to assist her with the sale. The sale is her personal project, she said, so she works it with no help. Her husband is physically disabled, which leaves just her to move racks, tables, and displays out of the garage in the mornings, tend to customers, then move everything back into the garage for the night. She can be reached at 906-281-0372.