The Christmas season is just around the corner and The Salvation Army is looking forward to their upcoming Christmas events.
The Salvation Army offers many ways to give and provides many opportunities for those in the community who want to give back to local families during the holiday season.
Janessa McAuley, Community and Family Services worker at the Drumheller Salvation Army said, “Coats for Kids is still happening. We are still handing out coats during food bank hours for all ages, including adults. Food bank hours are Tuesday and Thursday from 1:00 til 4:00. Our Red Bag Food Drive will be kicking off the beginning of November.”
Bags will arrive in mailboxes at the beginning of November. The bags can be filled with non-perishable foods. These bags are to be left on the front step of people’s homes for pick on Thursday, November 24. Each bag will contain bag labels that have more information about the event and volunteer opportunities listed for sorting the donations.
Christmas is a very busy time for The Salvation Army and they are recruiting volunteers to help with some of the events spread out over November and December. The Salvation Army’s biggest event is the Christmas Kettle Drive. There will be locations set up at Freson Bros, Extra Foods, Co-op, and Walmart.
McAuley said, “We are looking for volunteers to fill kettle shifts. This is a great opportunity for families to get out and give back during the season or for people who are interested in spreading cheer to the community.”
The Christmas Kettle kick-off will be November 25 at 10 a.m. at the Greentree Mall by the big Christmas tree.
Another important part of the Christmas season for The Salvation Army is Christmas food hampers, that also includes the toy program.
“If people are needing a little extra help during the season they can register for a Christmas hamper. If people want to donate food to the Christmas hamper program, they can drop off non-perishable food items at the bins in local grocery stores and can label it for Christmas hampers. Toy donations can be delivered to the thrift store but need to be specified that it’s for Christmas and not a store donation. Gift cards to places like Walmart are fantastic as they help us fill the specific wish lists of children receiving toys through The Salvation Army.” McAuley said.
Captain Jennifer Hillier said, “Where we always find gaps at Christmas time is gifts for teenagers. People tend to give gifts for children and we don’t get much for teenagers. Last year we found a need for art kits and a lot of requests for video games. Because video games are so expensive, we are asking for gift cards to give so that it can be put towards the games the teens want.”
When people sign up for their Christmas Hampers they are able to fill out a Christmas wish list to include specific things the children are hoping for. This enables The Salvation Army the chance to place desired gifts in the right homes. To sign up for a Hamper call 403-823-2215 to set up a date and time to register during registration week, which runs from November 14 - 18 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information on what The Salvation Army offers and what items are needed for the food bank visit the website drumsa.org.
