This is an awesome REI! My husband and I stopped in to look at shoes for him, and to ask about their garage sales, which we've heard a lot about. (All REI's have a few "garage sales" a year, which is open to REI members - they sell the merchandise that's been used and returned at spectacular deals.)
The guy working in shoes (super nice, can't remember his name, but was working on 12/27 around 6 pm) was more than helpful and recommended a few different minimalist shoes for my husband, and gave us a little more insight into the garage sales. He got my husband a few different shoes to make sure we knew the right size to look for during the garage sale. We felt like he was more focused on my husband's needs, rather than just trying to make the sale and get our money. That's a great feeling and for that, we will absolutely be back!
We ended up buying a membership for $20 so my husband could go to the garage sale coming up next Sunday. Everyone working had good advice for us regarding what time to get there to make sure he gets a good place in line. He's really looking forward to coming back on Sunday, and now since we have this lifetime membership, I'm sure REI will be seeing a lot more of us.