NATCHEZ — The Salvation Army church on Canal Street is for sale, and while the organization is looking to sell that property, it will continue to operate its thrift store.

“We don’t need (the church) because we don’t have Salvation Army offices or a church in Natchez, so we don’t need the actual building,” said Salvation Army Coordinator Suzette McMillan, who is located in McComb.

The thrift store, located adjacent to the church, has been closed since Aug. 1 because of financial concerns.

McMillan said that during the closure the Salvation Army has taken the opportunity to reorganize the store, which is expected to reopen Sept. 1.

The restructuring was done to maximize the amount of good the store can do in the community, McMillan said.

“We closed to do a reorganization of the store, change the store around and maximize the reorganization and minimize our overhead so we can be good stewards of our money,” McMillan said.

The store will retain the employees who were in place when it closed, but the Salvation Army will hire a new store manager.

“The staff that has been there has been there for five years or better, so they know how to handle the day-to-day operations,” McMillan said.

Until the thrift store manager is hired, McMillan said she will make weekly trips to the Natchez area to see how operations are going.

When the store reopens, it will operate 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The former Natchez director for the Salvation Army, Janet Trahern, resigned effective Aug. 17.

The Salvation Army first located in Natchez in 1904.

Those interested in applying for the thrift store manager’s position should contact McMillan at 601-961-7711.