AMHERST – The Salvation Army’s kettle campaign has only two weeks left before it comes to a close. Cpt. Chad Ingram of the Salvation Army said although the donations have been great, he’s still worried about meeting their campaign goal.
“At the moment, we’re a little bit over what we were at this time last year,” he said. “But it has mostly to do with the fact that we started a day and a half earlier (than last year).”
Ingram said he’s hoping the donations continue to flow, bringing closer to their goal of $39,000 as their need for the money has once again increased.
“The last three years, we have budgeted higher amounts for assistance because, in the last three years, we’ve been over budget,” said Ingram. “The problem is this week has actually been a little lower (for collecting). That worries me because our last week needs to be really good.”
Ingram said Salvation Armies across Canada usually raise 60 per cent of their goal budget money by the last week, and 40 per cent in the last week.
“If we’re down much in the next week, we’ll actually miss our goal,” he said. “I’m glad the giving is up, I just hope it continues to be up. We need a good strong last week in order to reach our goal.”
By the end of Thursday, Ingram guesses the campaign has raised $23,000. Ingram is hoping to finish the rest of the week off by raising $6,000, leaving only $10,000 more to raise in their final week. His hopes are high because, he said, they were able to accomplish it last year.
Kettles are set up in the Amherst Centre Mall, Walmart and one at Superstore. In Springhill, there is a kettle at Foodland and the liquor store.
Donations can also be made via text message. Donors can text HOPE6000 to 45678 to make an automatic $5 donation.
jturner@amherstdaily.com
