In 1902, Goodwill Industries International was founded in Boston by Rev. Edgar J. Helms, a Methodist minister and early social innovator. Helms collected used household goods and clothing in wealthier areas of the city, then trained and hired those who were poor to mend and repair the used goods. The goods were then resold or were given to the people who repaired them. The system worked, and the Goodwill philosophy of self-sufficiency was born.

In 1963, Goodwill Industries of Central North Carolina, Inc. began serving the Triad community by providing career development services to people with barriers to employment, such as a disability or lack of work experience. Through a grant in 1976, we moved our corporate office from Elm Street to Eugene Street, allowing us to expand our building as well as our services. Through a capital campaign in 1993, we were able to expand our corporate offices and services again. We grew again in 2003, by building a community resource center in Reidsville, and again in 2007, by building a community resource center in Asheboro.

Now, Goodwill operates 16 retail stores and three community resource centers to serve Alamance, Caswell, Guilford, Randolph and Rockingham Counties. Goodwill collects donated items, sells them in stores and uses the revenue to fund job training in community resource centers. Our community resource centers offer evaluations, vocational skills classes, computer labs, career counseling, job search assistance and many other services to vocational rehabilitation clients, department of social services clients and other local residents.