The Salvation Army is seeking volunteer services as the holiday season hits full swing.
Maj. Alan Phillips and his wife, Cheryl, said The Salvation Army in Columbus is looking to bolster its volunteer efforts on a number of fronts.
Cheryl said the Salvation Army is encouraging people to use its Angel Trees. There are four public Angel Trees — one at Leigh Mall between Hobby Lobby and American Deli, one at each Citizens Bank location and one at Starbucks.
Cheryl said the Salvation Army has received Christmas assistance requests from the families of about 478 children. Requests for children who are 12 years old and younger are put on pink or blue cards with angels and The Salvation Army shield on them. Cheryl said they typically include the child’s first name, information about clothing sizes and a wish for a toy or similar gift.
“A customer can just come and pick one of the trees and adopt it for the holiday,” she said. “It’s really pretty neat. Or they can adopt the entire family. We’ve had groups come in and just take families and do the entire family. If there’s someone that wants to help an entire family for Christmas, that’s another way they can help as well.”
Cheryl said several churches, businesses and other groups also have private Angel Trees.
Alan said the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle campaign — where bell ringers stand outside stores with a kettle for donations from shoppers — is kicking into gear.
“This is really the time where we pick up,” Alan said. “We have all the Walmarts coming on board now and the Walmarts are our best locations.”
The Salvation Army is in need of volunteers as the holiday season moves on, Alan said.
“We made about $58,000 in kettles, which is good for this area,” Alan said. “But then we ended up paying about $11,000 in salaries. We’re trying to get more volunteers to have more funds to help more people.”
Alan said people can volunteer as bell ringers in groups or individually. He said they have some groups who work the bells for certain hours, such as a group of ladies who rings every Monday from 3-5 p.m., and individuals who will ring for an hour or two at a time.
“Once you do this, you’re hooked,” he said. “You will always want to do this because it really makes you feel good, and gives you hope.”
For more information about the Salvation Army’s volunteer opportunities, visit the main office at 2219 Main Street or call 327-5137.
Starkville
Starkville’s Salvation Army manager, Katie Walker, also said residents have many charitable giving avenues available this holiday season, whether through direct donations or volunteer efforts.
Slots are still available for bell-ringing shifts at many Starkville storefronts, she said, and volunteers are welcome to help out at The Salvation Army warehouse through December.
“A lot of the volunteers we get are college students, so the need is definitely at the middle of December and toward the end of the year. (Volunteers) are needed and welcome,” Walker said. “At this point in the year, we see an increase in people wanting appointments to get help with food. Canned food and non-perishable items are definitely needed, and we also accept gently used clothing, household items and furniture. If people want to donate new clothing or toys, we can use those for our Angel Tree presents.”
For information on how to donate time or goods in Starkville, call 662-324-3304. Donations can be made at The Salvation Army’s 407 Industrial Park Road location during business hours to assure the gifts are handled and processed by staff members.
In its 2015 Guide to Holiday Giving, Volunteer Starkville published a list of Golden Triangle charity organizations and their specific needs for the holiday season.
Volunteer Starkville urges those wishing to donate goods to check organizations’ specific wish lists for needed items and contact those entities directly before initiating a goods drive or volunteer project as the charity’s needs may have changed.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.