Tim Smythe Sr. & P&T Surplus need your help!

If you aren’t familiar with P&T Surplus, it is a one-of-a-kind, have-to-see-to-believe, locally owned and operated store, which buys and sells just about everything, and for decades has been owned and run by one single man, Timothy Smythe- a man who desperately needs your help! Please join this fundraiser to stop P&T from closing down, as more and more big box stores like Harbor Freight surround this tiny vulnerable business and Tim’s health has taken a turn for the worse.

My father Tim Smythe Sr, the owner of P&T Surplus for the past 50 years, is not only my hero, but he is also my best friend and one of the hardest-working and generous people I know. He’s managed to keep P&T going for over 50 years now through hard work and maintaining great relationships with all his customers. He treats every customer that comes through the front door like they were lifelong friends. He rarely–if ever–charges customers full price for anything or if he does, it's a fraction of what the price is. Throughout the day you will often hear him tell people, “put that in your pocket and I’ll get you next time.” He charges people what they can afford to pay despite his financial struggles. Once in a while, you'll even hear a customer argue with my father, insisting that he’s not charging them enough! I find it hilarious, as I watch my father effortlessly talk customers into walking away with full pockets and incredible deals, no matter how much they might protest.

It’s interactions like these that best represent my father, his business practices, and most importantly his approach towards life and those around him: generosity, hard work, and respect. It's not just the customers that benefit from Tim Smythe Sr, but he does so much for the local community as well. Whether it's the thousands of boxes of masks he sent to the local hospitals during the pandemic or local schools and colleges that need tools or art materials my father will generously contribute whatever he can.

Being a one-owner mom-and-pop store it's never been easy to keep P&T afloat with the big box stores popping up like Harbor Freight recently did, but things recently have gotten even worse if that’s even possible. First, my father had to give up the family home to foreclosure after my Mom passed away a couple of years ago, soon after is when he had his first stroke that left him with arm, hand and speech problems. More recently in late January, he had another small stroke that landed him in the hospital and now makes it very difficult to keep his balance. My father has no medical insurance other than Medicare and owes several thousand dollars in medical bills. Recently he’s had to sell the business property because of back mortgage payments and taxes. Luckily he convinced the new owner to lease us back the building but we have fallen way behind in rent payments to him already. If we can’t catch up on the back rent we are going to lose P&T Surplus. Besides the back rent, there are several years of state and local taxes owed. The most important debt at the moment is to the electric company that says he owes around $6000. And then there's the propane gas supplier that needs to be paid right away before we can get a full delivery so we can run the heaters. My dad is 78 years old, and it can be really cold in the store without heat but I can tell you without hesitation, that won't stop him from working because he is not ready to give up!

I have hoped that my father and I would keep the store going until his death and I’m determined to help him do that. Despite my limitations having Stage 5 kidney failure and having to go to treatments three days per week, I am determined more than ever to see my father get through this and keep P&T going! Not just for me or him, but for all of you that still root for the small mom-and-pop stores going up against the big box stores.

Having seen all of the generosity that my father has given over the past 50 years and the uncompromised attentiveness my father has given to every one of his customers I’m appealing to you that we can’t let this be the end of the line for P&T and Tim Smythe Sr. if there’s still a chance. P&T is my dad’s life and legacy and I don’t know what he would do if he lost it.

We have to help Tim from losing the store before it's too late!

With any help, Tim receives–he will immediately pay the electric & gas bills, the medical bills from his stroke, some back taxes, and finally, catch up on the rent payments for the store. Nobody wants P&T Surplus to close, especially Tim. Thank you, everyone, in advance for making a difference, to help Tim Sr. and give P&T Surplus a chance!