GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The Grand Valley Area Command Salvation Army holiday donations are down. The local chapter adds that they’re half a million dollars short of their goal.
Major Tim Meyer says they’ve not hit the panic button quite yet but says they are looking at possible cutbacks.
“I hear that bell ringing; it's just a reminder to me that there's someone who's in need in the area,” Meyer said.
Many times this year those bells were silent. There were moments you might have even walked by and noticed the red kettles sitting alone.
“It's just been a struggle to get people to volunteer to ring the bell. So that's been part of the concern,” Meyers added.
The Salvation Army holiday and Red Kettle campaign rely heavily on this fundraiser.
“That helps not only what we do at Christmastime but our assistance all year long,” Meyer said. “We’re at about 70% of that goal. The kettles, which is a good part of that goal, were down significantly this year.”
A similar struggle is found all around West Michigan. The Salvation Army told FOX 17 the two days they lost was because the blizzard cost them.
“We would have had a hard time even getting our bell ringers out to their locations. And so in that two-day period, Christmas Eve and Christmas, we could have raised about $35,000; that would have helped tremendously,” he added.
The Salvation Army major oversees several West Michigan branches. Meyer said all but one area are down in collecting donations with their Red Kettle campaign.
“When someone is standing there, if they're at a large chain store or large food store, you know, we can expect $150–$200 an hour coming into that bucket. With nobody standing there, we might see $20 for the whole day, if that."
Meyer says on average they serve 200 families a week. He adds it’s early to tell, but they might have to make cutbacks to services.
“I’m watching a constant flow of people in and out for social services, whether it's for rental assistance ... my heart just almost skips a beat when I see someone going out with a couple of carts of food to their car,” Meyer said. “I know that represents a household being fed that would not otherwise have that type of food for their family.”
They're still collecting donations until the end of the month in hopes of getting to the goal of $1.7 million.
Donations can be made at SAkentcounty.org or mailed to:
The Salvation Army in Kent County
1215 Fulton St. E
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
