Temple Beth Sholom in Flushing will hold its annual Bazaar this weekend with over 35,000 items for sale. The stars of the event are more than 21,000 used books whose topics range from history and business to sports and religion (Judaica and others).
The 2018 edition of the Bazaar and Book Bonanza continues a Temple tradition that was started in 1965, when the total number of books for sale only filled just one table. By 1974, an entire multipurpose room was dedicated to books, according to then-book chair Lee Temares.
This year, Jeff Cohen is responsible for the book room and the "massive amount of donations" the temple has received.
“I supervise monthly category presorting. We get an estimated 25,000-35,000 items donated every year, so we can’t wait until a week before the event to start setting stuff up,” Cohen said. The sorting process, he said, begins in January and lasts until the week of the event.
Bargain hunters will find hardcover books for no more than $2, as well as an assortment of DVDs, CDs, jewelry, antiques, art, cosmetics, houseware, toys and clothing.
Admission to the bazaar, which runs from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, is free – and there is a $10 for early entry between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. The bazaar opens for free from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sunday hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Monday hours from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The funds raised will go toward programming for the Temple and building maintenance.
