LISBON — The concept has been around for years. In fact, the Building Materials Exchange was in business at 102 Lisbon St. for 20 years before it closed a few years back, leaving a void for homeowners and businesses alike.

Last Sheaf Building Materials Exchange has quietly taken over and now two years on is continuing the tradition of helping lower-income families who need a new door, windows or just some trim and nails at a discounted price.

All the materials sold there are donated, even the new stuff, says Greg Keeney. “We don’t buy anything,” he said.

Keeney, a deacon at the Wales Brethren Church, is the director of the operation, which is supported by and affiliated with a group of Christian Anabaptist churches in Maine and Pennsylvania whose members believe in helping their neighbors and the wider community.

Customers visiting the long, green building on Lisbon Road will find doors, windows, cabinets, tools, appliances and a few surprises. Somebody recently donated a baby grand piano, which someone bought for parts.

A group of women shopping Thursday spotted a chandelier and shrieked with delight at the find.

The vision, Keeney said, was to take in materials and reuse them, saving things from going into the landfill while also helping people in need.

Anybody can shop at the store, which is open Wednesday to Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays 8 a.m. to noon, but homeowners who meet low-income guidelines get a substantial discount, allowing them to make needed repairs and updates to their homes for less.

Last Sheaf is a biblical reference that the group feels fits its business vision in the 21st century. “In biblical times the last sheaves of grain from a harvest were to be left behind to benefit the needy,” the group explains on its website. “We are taking leftover building materials, tools, and supplies and making them available at greatly reduced prices to those in need.”

Keeney said that when they took over the property, it was in rough shape. Insulation was hanging from the ceiling and everything was disheveled.

“We organized, we inventoried everything that was here,” Keeney said, “which I don’t think had been done. So, we inventoried everything, priced everything. … The main thing people said when we first opened was ‘We’re so glad you’re open.'”

Customers, Keeney said, come from a wide cross section, and not just from Lisbon.

“Oh, we get people from hours away,” he added. Contractors shop there from time to time, too, but mostly they send their clients to get a good deal, or have stuff to donate themselves.

A retirement community in Falmouth was tearing down 10 cottages and called Last Sheaf. Keeney and his crews took out appliances, cabinets, doors, hardware — all materials that have been repurposed.

Last Sheaf is mostly staffed by Brethren Church volunteers through a program called Engage 207 that has members reach out to help the community at large. Keeney and his wife, for example, volunteered at the Good Shepherd Food Bank when they first moved to Maine 25 years ago, and he notes the Brethren Church played an integral role in the creation of the Root Cellar in Lewiston.

Keeney’s son-in-law Peter Bucher also works at Last Sheaf as the facilities and warehouse director.

As Keeney and his staff and volunteers get ready to mark two years in business on Thanksgiving, they and the people they serve have a lot to be thankful for.

Keeney said they just started a program to help low-income homeowners make repairs to their home — like installing a door, a window, or helping with a roof project, or a ramp. The Assist Program will focus on helping people with necessary projects.

When the church took over the board that oversees the nonprofit, leaders believed they would be supporting the operation for a year, maybe longer. But business has been better than they thought.

Customer traffic on a recent Thursday morning was constant, from first-timers to regulars.

“I think the first month in December we might not have covered all our expenses,” Keeney said, “but after that we’ve always covered our expenses and more.”