NORWAY – Bert Rugg has a lot of visions in his mind when it comes to the Alpha & Omega Thrift Shop he operates behind the Norway/Paris transfer station on Brown Street.

His latest – the placement of a 24- by 60-foot double-wide former portable classroom that will become a furniture showroom – arrived Thursday.

“Everything I do, I look for the future,” said the director of Youth Outreach Ministries, Inc., which runs His Place Teen Center. The thrift shop raises money for the center and local youth outreach programs.

Rugg has been trying to get the bigger unit in place since last summer. On Monday, members of the Norway and Paris planning boards finally came to an agreement that allowed it to be placed on site.

The problem, said Rugg, was an apparently a question over who owns what part of the parking lot. The property is split down the center between Norway and Paris.

With that issue out of the way and the eventual showroom, which was delivered by Schiavi Leasing Corp. of Oxford and sitting there, Rugg is hoping to get the one-time classroom leveled, shelved and stocked in time for a Dec. 15 grand re-opening. Free food, including hamburgers, hot dogs and soda, will be served from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will also be prizes, stuffed animals and candy available for children, and sale prices on merchandise, he said.

Rugg, 58, sees himself doing this until he’s at least 63. His mind is filled with ideas on how to improve and expand the thrift shop, which opened last May after the former Ruby’s Goldmine closed.

Getting electricity on site through the traditional manner or even solar power, expanding his merchandise by going through outlets such as Bob’s and Mardens are a few of the ideas he keeps in his vision.

“How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time,” he chuckled when describing his goals.

Alpha & Omega Thrift Shop is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at least until the new year. Rugg said he may take a hiatus in mid winter while he does missionary work at an orphanage in Mexico and then re-open the shop in April.

The shop is located on the lower level of the Norway/Paris Solid Waste Facility at 39 Brown St., across from Amato’s. Signs will direct people through the entrance gate and down the hill to the shop.

Residents and non-residents are welcome to shop and to drop off donations at the shop, but everyone is asked to avoid leaving anything when the site is not manned.

Volunteers are sought to share the work.

More information is available by calling Rugg at 207-743-9503 or 207-515-3000.