It is the season of giving and the Salvation Army hopes the sentiment encourages Okanagan residents to step forward and give the gift of their time.
“Donating time is huge. It is absolutely huge. The value in it is incredible,” said Angela Stadnyk, volunteer and kettle coordinator with the Kelowna Salvation Army.
Stadnyk is appealing to residents to consider volunteering their time as kettle bell ringers.
“It kind of sounds like you’re not doing too much because you know, you’re standing in one spot, but that spot that you’re standing in is generating funds for those who are in need,” Stadnyk said.
The Kelowna Salvation Army, which also serves Lake Country, still has 951 shifts to fill between now and Dec. 24. Each shift is two hours long.
Stadnyk said with travel virtually at a standstill the last two years, securing volunteers was easier during COVID restrictions.
“They just had more time and so we were certainly able to fill it and meet our goal,” Stadnyk said. “With things opening up again, it’s definitely been a little bit of a struggle.”
The Kelowna Salvation Army kicked off its annual kettle campaign last Friday, announcing a goal of $850,000.
The money is needed to support a huge increase in demand amid inflation and rising interest rates.
According to the Salvation Army, the Kelowna location has seen a 34 per cent jump in clients in the first six months of 2022 compared to the same time period last year.
The demand for Christmas hampers is also way up.
There are already 465 hamper applications compared to 404 at this point in 2021.
In West Kelowna, the plea for bell ringers is much the same.
Captain Jennifer Henson told Global News the Westside Salvation Army has more than 1,000 shifts to fill.
The request comes amid growing demand there as well.
“The demand is very high,” Henson said. “Sixty-five per cent of the visits we had this year are new folks coming in for help.”
Henson said the organization is hoping to raise $225,000.
Anyone wanting to volunteer as a bell ringer in West Kelowna can call 250-258-7464.
In Kelowna, the number to call is 250-860-2329.
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