Salvation Army says its needs more donations Deadline to apply for hampers Dec. 2

While the Salvation Army is always busy around Christmas, this year might be even moreso than last, Capt. Angel Sandoval said Tuesday morning.
The Salvation Army started handing out applications for its Christmas hamper program Monday—and saw 210 picked up by the end of that day.
“Yesterday we gave out 49 applications in the first half-hour,” Capt. Sandoval noted.
Last year, a total of 220 hampers were distributed across the district.
The deadline to turn in hamper applications is this Thursday (Dec. 2).
People are reminded to include the proper information and their signature. And don’t forget to bring along photo identification for adults and proper identification for children.
One source of donations for the Christmas hampers that the Salvation Army depends on each holiday season is the Santa Claus parade, which took place here Saturday.
Capt. Sandoval noted this year’s event saw people giving about 25 percent more than last year, with plenty of toys and food collected by volunteers for the Salvation Army.
“It’s a good start,” he remarked.
In related news, Capt. Sandoval also said the Salivation Army still is looking for sponsors for both its “Sponsor-a-Family” and “Adopt-a-Family” programs.
The first program sees people donate money to buy a family a hamper of food for Christmas.
The second one enables individuals, families, or businesses to go out, shop for all the food that would go into a hamper themselves, and donate that directly to the Salvation Army, which, in turn, will give it to a family.
“Our motto for this year is ‘Compassion is Love in Action,’ and our dream is that no one goes without Christmas joy,” said Capt. Sandoval.
Anyone wishing to sponsor or adopt a family, or simply donate money, toys, or non-perishable food items, can call the Salvation Army at 274-3871 or drop by the Citadel at 316 Victoria Ave.
< *c>Christmas kettles
Yet another way in which the hampers are funded is the Salvation Army’s Christmas kettle campaign, which officially kicks off this Friday (Dec. 3) at 10 a.m. at Canada Safeway.
Volunteers will be out ringing the bells at several locations around town this Friday and Saturday, and then every Thursday through Saturday leading up until Christmas.
“We need a lot of volunteers,” stressed Capt. Sandoval, adding they’ll be needed not only to man the Christmas kettles, but also to help pack up all the hampers for delivery closer to Christmas.
Those interested in volunteering in any way can call the Citadel at 274-3871.