Thrift Store Worker Finds Nearly $7K

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - A thrift store worker checking donated items found nearly $7,000 in a coat pocket and money belt, police say. "I guess I was shocked," said Shirley Meagher, who works at the Home Place Thrift Store in Grand Forks.

Meagher, who has worked part time at the thrift store since September, said she occasionally finds strange objects mixed in with donations. On Monday, she found a can of soup.

Tuesday's find was an eye-opener.

"I was sorting through some donations and came across a belt that looked unusual," she said. "It looked awfully thick."

Meagher remembered hearing that some belts had zippers so their owners could hide money, so she checked the donated belt a little closer. She found a zipper, opened it and pulled out a bunch of $100 bills.

She contacted her boss, Prairie Harvest executive director Debra Johnson, who decided to notify police.

Meagher said she started sorting through other items that arrived with the belt, to try to find the person who donated it, and found more money in a coat.

The total amount in the coat and the belt came to nearly $7,000.

Police said they would keep the money until it can be returned to the family of the coat's owner, Gary Beaton, who died last month. His relatives live out of the state, police Lt. Jim Remer said.

"His property was left behind in the apartment," Remer said. In such cases, friends or the landlord help with cleaning it out, he said.

"They had gone through his apartment and were donating some extra items to the thrift store," Remer said.

Police have had calls about money found, Remer said, but he could not recall a case similar to Meagher's find.

"It's a rather large amount of money for something like that," he said. "We'll just follow up on it."

Meagher said she never thought of keeping the money.

"I just think the good Lord will put the money where it should go," she said.