Salvation Army looking to add volunteers for annual Kettle Campaign

The Salvation Army launched its Christmas Kettle Campaign last week and is looking for more volunteers to help out.

Until the end of the holiday season, the organization will have volunteers at local malls and major shopping centres collecting donations to help those less fortunate in the community.

Salvation Army will also be operating at full capacity for the first time since the pandemic slowed operations in 2020.

“We are just really excited to be able to kick off this year’s Kettle Campaign and to be out in the community again after COVID-19,” Maj. Al Hoeft, who is the divisional secretary of public relations with Salvation Army said.

Mayor Sandra Masters was on hand at the Cornwall Centre supporting the campaign, which has been operating in Regina for the last 130 years.

“This is a community-based organization that serves marginalized people,” Masters said. “It allows for community within community and the support that they get from our city is absolutely phenomenal and I think the organization is really looking forward to this year without pandemic rules in place.”

The community based organization said they are having a difficult time finding volunteers on the national level.

However, Maj. Hoeft said residents in Regina have been eager to assist.

“A lot of places in the country have had to hire people to help with the kettles, but we've been able to exclusively staff our kettles with volunteers, that's our practice and we want to keep that going,” Maj. Hoeft said.

Maj. Hoeft also said the goal of the campaign is to allow families to a holiday season everyone would want to have.

“That's what this is all about, us as a community supporting those who maybe have had a tough time [helping them] to be able to have the kind of Christmas that we would all love to have. At the same time be able to serve them year round and make sure that their needs are [always] being met.”

The campaign raised over $236,000 in Regina last year.

This year the organization is hoping to raise over $240,000 this holiday season.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, click here.