43
Salvation Army in Salem to hit goal
Requests by the needy are lower this year than last year despite the economy.
SALEM — The Salem Salvation Army is on track to meet its goal of $40,000 to help the less fortunate this year.
Capt. John Brand of the Salvation Army, 1249 N. Ellsworth Ave., said Tuesday that there are about 500 children in 350 needy families in the Salem-Columbiana area.
The official deadline is Monday for its Angel Tree program. In this program, youths can ask for items such as clothes, books or toys.
People can select a request and buy what the child wants.
After that, “Parents can look at the gifts and decide how they want to wrap them,” said Brand.
Despite the poor economy, requests for help are down.
Other local helping agencies are also seeing a slight decrease in requests.
“I don’t know why,” he added.
The biggest recent wave of requests came in 2008, with requests for presents for 900 children.
“Since last year, the requests have not really let up,” he said.
“We work closely with other churches and agencies to maximize what we have to give out,” Brand said.
The Salvation Army is part of the United Way.
Some people seeking help are referred to government programs for utility assistance or clothing.
“The Salem community has been very generous and really supporting,” he said.
The good news is that the collections from the army’s kettles are up this year by $3,000.
Groups such as Rotary, Kiwanis and the Salem High School Spanish Club have taken shifts to ring bells by the kettles.
The Salvation Army has suspended its meal program temporarily. It provided a meal from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays and also the last five days of the month.
The program helped about 50 people each time to stretch their food budget.
“They would have a main dish and a side dish and something to drink,” he said.
Brand said that the Angel Tree program items are now where the meal program was taking place. He said that the meals will return after the holidays.
wilkinson@vindy.com