Wearing their cheerful Salvation Army tartan scarves and tams, Mary Sanders and Tina Kraus, Salvation Army volunteers, recently expressed thanks to all the people who helped man the Red Kettles during this year’s campaign. The women hope to recruit community members for other worthwhile activities of the local Salvation Army service unit.
Mary Sanders of the Cook County’s Salvation Army Service Unit recently expressed thanks to the community for its generous support during the annual pre-Christmas Red Kettle campaign, which resulted in $8,000 available to meet needs in the county.
In addition, said Sanders, the big Red Kettle donations on December 20 – 21, totaling just over $2,270, will be eligible for matching funds from an anonymous donor who offered up to a $2 million match for those two days in Minnesota and North Dakota. A gift of this kind (amount and time period of it) is the largest in Salvation Army history.
“Now your Service Unit has both a challenge and a great opportunity—how can we better and more fully meet needs in Cook County?” asked Sanders.
During the past year most of the Cook County Service Unit’s efforts were directed to meeting needs as they arose—emergency food, fuel (mostly heating, but also transportation) and housing. The unit also engaged in cooperative projects, such as purchasing school supplies to be distributed as needed and necessary nonfood items (i.e. toilet paper) for the Cook County Food Shelf to distribute. “These needs were easy to meet because you had provided the funds and such projects don’t require many hands to carry them out,” said Sanders.
“However, with a few more hands we could do so much more,” said Sanders. “For example, last Christmas the service unit distributed food baskets to 14 households, a very worthy effort that could easily be expanded with more helping hands, hearts and minds.”
“Could you provide a hand from time to time? Would you like to learn more? Would you like to be a part of the planning?” she asked.
An opportunity to learn more is coming up. Anyone interested is encouraged to attend the Service Unit’s next regular meeting at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 4 at the First Congregational Church.
If you cannot attend the meeting, but would like to learn more, please contact Mary Sanders at (218) 387-1729 or by email msanders@boreal.org.
Sanders added, “A few more words of thanks are needed. For a listing of folks, churches, and businesses supporting the 2013 Campaign, check the thank you ad in this issue of the paper.
“This was the first year that churches other than Cornerstone Community Church took on the burden of providing a full schedule of Saturday attendants. We are deeply grateful for that help. Thank you to the American Legion Auxiliary and the Order of Eastern Star for their generous donations.
“Thanks to our Whole Foods Co-op for joining other businesses in offering space for a counter top kettle. And, finally, acknowledgement to the top earning counter-top kettles: 1st place to the Blue Water Café at $181; 2nd to the Holiday station in Grand Marais at $97; and tied (just 97cents difference) for 3rd place, Chicago Bay Marketplace and Java Moose at $92 and $91 respectively.
“Again, thanks to this community, to each individual donor member in it. Without you we would be unable to meet needs as we have in the past and because of you, we have the challenge of expanding our work in Cook County,” said Sanders.
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