Mother's love inspires new vintage store

Westmoreland opened her store, White Elephant Sale, at the corner of Fifth and Telfair streets in downtown Augusta. While she's excited about having her own business, there is emotion in her voice as she describes how she got started.

Her mother died almost one year ago, leaving her with an inheritance allowing her to go out on her own.

"I never saw myself as working for myself," Westmoreland said. "I always thought I'd stay at office jobs, with benefits and good health insurance."

What changed her mind was, in fact, her mother. Westmoreland had what she calls "a hard few years," working to care for her aunt until she passed away and then for her mother before her death.

"When I sat there with my mama, I would sit and search on Google and just ponder, what can I learn about today?" she recalled.

From those hours spent with her mother, she decided she wanted to open her own shop. She read about auctions, learned how to shop at yard sales like a professional and filled her home with clothes, shoes, furniture, books and art that she found.

"Our house was a mess," she said.

Almost a year after her mother died, Westmoreland finally found a storefront to turn into a business. At the corner of Fifth and Telfair streets, her building was home to a quilting shop until late 2010. She liked the location downtown, the corner spot and the large windows that let customers see a little inside from the road.

As she straightened things around the shop, she tried to come up with a name and couldn't think of anything. She was talking with Jim Stringer, the owner of American Wilderness Outfitters Limited, and he asked her about the name. Westmoreland told him she was having trouble thinking of one.

He knew how closely tied this venture was to her mother's memory, so he asked what her mother loved.

"We all save something, and my mother loved elephants," she said. "He looked at me and said, seems like a no-brainer to me, call it the White Elephant Sale."

The name of her store is a way she keeps her mother a part of everything she does.

"The things that are symbolic like that are the things you should remember," she said.

Different themes

From the very threshold of White Elephant, customers can see an extensive collection of vinyl records on shelves, display cases and metal racks. Westmoreland estimates that she has at least 15,000 albums.

They include more than 2,000 78s dating back to 1903 and about 10,000 packaged LPs of the music of Elvis, Beethoven and Cher.

Mother's love inspires new vintage store | The Augusta Chronicle

Westmoreland opened her store, White Elephant Sale, at the corner of Fifth and Telfair streets in downtown Augusta. While she's excited about having her own business, there is emotion in her voice as she describes how she got started.

Her mother died almost one year ago, leaving her with an inheritance allowing her to go out on her own.

"I never saw myself as working for myself," Westmoreland said. "I always thought I'd stay at office jobs, with benefits and good health insurance."

What changed her mind was, in fact, her mother. Westmoreland had what she calls "a hard few years," working to care for her aunt until she passed away and then for her mother before her death.

"When I sat there with my mama, I would sit and search on Google and just ponder, what can I learn about today?" she recalled.

From those hours spent with her mother, she decided she wanted to open her own shop. She read about auctions, learned how to shop at yard sales like a professional and filled her home with clothes, shoes, furniture, books and art that she found.

"Our house was a mess," she said.

Almost a year after her mother died, Westmoreland finally found a storefront to turn into a business. At the corner of Fifth and Telfair streets, her building was home to a quilting shop until late 2010. She liked the location downtown, the corner spot and the large windows that let customers see a little inside from the road.

As she straightened things around the shop, she tried to come up with a name and couldn't think of anything. She was talking with Jim Stringer, the owner of American Wilderness Outfitters Limited, and he asked her about the name. Westmoreland told him she was having trouble thinking of one.

He knew how closely tied this venture was to her mother's memory, so he asked what her mother loved.

"We all save something, and my mother loved elephants," she said. "He looked at me and said, seems like a no-brainer to me, call it the White Elephant Sale."

The name of her store is a way she keeps her mother a part of everything she does.

"The things that are symbolic like that are the things you should remember," she said.

Different themes

From the very threshold of White Elephant, customers can see an extensive collection of vinyl records on shelves, display cases and metal racks. Westmoreland estimates that she has at least 15,000 albums.

They include more than 2,000 78s dating back to 1903 and about 10,000 packaged LPs of the music of Elvis, Beethoven and Cher.

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