Although many may not want to think about Christmas so early in the fall, the Salvation Army is already looking ahead to their annual fundraising initiative for the Christmas season — the kettle campaign.
The first official day for the donation kettles will be Nov. 25, with seven locations around Moose Jaw where people can donate a handful of pocket change, or more, to the Christmas campaign. Much like last year, the kettles will be located at high-traffic locations, such as the large chain grocery stores, the Town 'n' Country Mall, and the Co-op Marketplace.
Major Dan Broome of the Salvation Army is looking forward to yet another year of the kettles, as the community always steps up to support the organization.
Broome’s goal this year is to collect $60,000 before the campaign is over on Dec. 24. All of the money collected during this time will remain in Moose Jaw, to fund the support programs that the Salvation Army offers over Christmastime as well as for emergency assistance throughout the year.
“We're looking at probably around 500 families will be coming to us (this year), seeking some form of Christmas assistance, in the form of gift cards as well as toys,” said Broome. “(That means) quite an amount of money, on our part, to provide Christmas for people in town.”
The kettle campaign is a staple of the Christmas season, one that the Salvation Army has been organizing for over a century. With the kickoff for the campaign looming, Broome is putting out a call for volunteers to once again man the kettles this year.
“We can't operate the kettles without volunteers,” said Broome. “We'll start approaching service clubs, local churches who've helped in the past, as well as individual volunteers to come and help us out.”
Each kettle location needs someone to stand over them between the hours of 10 a.m. and about 9 p.m., on Mondays through Saturdays. Volunteers can sign up for three-hour shifts, as often as they would like.
“It's a good way of giving back to the community and helping to make a difference in people's lives,” said Broome. “The money we raise does go to help people at Christmastime and we're not going to be able to do it on our own.”
To become a kettle volunteer, contact the Salvation Army by calling their main office at 1-306-692-5899.
