Residents of Jackson and Hall counties will be receiving an unexpected holiday gift this year: a free yard sale table at the Pendergrass Flea Market.

"We thought that this would be a good way to bring the community together and to let them know that we are here for them through hard times," said Blake Mooser, the flea market’s business development manager.

The free table offer, which is available only on Saturdays in November, began last week and will run through the end of the month.

For Mike Holland, a Gainesville resident, the timing of the offer is perfect.

"I’ve had yard sales at my home before, but this is easier and you can reach more people," Holland said.

"This is a good time because I have some stuff that I wanted to get rid of, and this lets me make some extra money for the holidays."

Although gas prices have come down significantly during the past couple of weeks, flea market owners say they began to see a change in attendance at the flea market when fuel prices topped $4.

"We noticed a difference in customer traffic at the flea market when gas prices were higher," said Tim Mooser, owner of the indoor flea market on U.S. 129. "We see this as way to help people earn extra Christmas money and also as a way to bring in more customers."

If Saturday was any indication, the free yard sale table has done just that.

"Usually, things are pretty slow during the early morning hours, but the yard sale tables have brought in more early morning shoppers," Blake Mooser said.

While the flea market itself offers a large variety of goods — everything from fresh-baked goods to perfume to barnyard animals —the yard sale tables have brought in their own plethora of products.

On Saturday, dozens of interested patrons braved the early morning chill to browse the offerings of used board games, household tools and clothing.

"I don’t usually go to yard sales, but I heard about this and decided to come take a look," said Kim Davis of Talmo.

As the flea market continues to grow — it currently is referred to as the South’s largest flea market — Tim Mooser says offering free yard sale tables also is a great way to ensure that the venue is able to appeal to a broader customer base.

"We have so many unusual things here, It’s really not what you envision when you envision a flea market," he said. "We have a lot of the bigger stores here as vendors; we’ve really become more of a country mall. But when some people come to a flea market, they desire to buy some yard sale items, so it’s important to have those vendors, too."