As many newly retired folks do, Dunwoody’s Ellen Frank found herself searching for a meaningful cause to support when she quit working in 2015. She pitched in with a few organizations before discovering the Assistance League of Atlanta, a group of about 270 volunteers who find the variety of opportunities and the flexibility of tasks among the main attractions.
“We’re going against the trend of having a hard time getting volunteers,” said Frank, who is serving this year as the league’s president. “We have women and men in their 60s, 70s and 80s doing all sorts of things. I like to say we pay to be volunteers.”
The league is a membership organization that asks participants to pay $75 to join. But the fee is a small portion of the group’s income; its main revenue source is Attic Treasures, a Chamblee thrift shop that’s open four days a week and sells a range of donated merchandise…