Salvation Army sees donation slowdown, likely due to COVID-19

The Salvation Army’s Havre branch has seen some of their holiday activities take a hit, and Social Services Director Trina Crawford suspect the pandemic is the primary culprit behind many of the difficulties they’ve seen.

Crawford said their Angel Tree and Adopt a Family programs have both seen less engagement this year, particularly the latter.

“That’s been really slow so far this year,” she said.

She said Havre is a generous community, so she suspects the lack of donations is likely due to the pandemic which has put many people in difficult financial situations.

Despite this, Crawford said, she is encouraging people in the community to adopt a family, as there are still many in the community in need this Christmas.

Angel Tree donations are also down this year so far, she said, and she suspects that’s due to people just not being as out-and-about due to the pandemic.

She said the families that have yet to be adopted will get Angel Tree gifts regardless of whether they end up being sponsored.

“We make sure that at least the kids are taken care of,” Crawford said.

Angel Tree tags are available at Walmart and North 40, and the deadline to sign-up is Dec. 3 which can be done at https://www.saangel.org .

People can also sign-up for these programs at Salvation Army’s Havre office between 10:30 a.m. and noon, or 1 and 2:30 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays, or Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Sign-up requires the picture ID of the person filling out the forms, Social Security cards for all family members to be taken care of by the programs, proof of residence, and proof of income.

Salvation Army’s Red Kettle event is also underway and is the main fundraiser they have for the year.

“All the money raised in the Red Kettle event is what we will turn around to help people in the next year,” said Crawford. “Whatever we raise is what has to last us until the next year.”

She said it’s especially important to raise as much money as possible by Dec. 24, because she sees a lot of people who are in need during the pandemic and potentially more after it ends.

“When (COVID-19) lifts and they take away all those government grants, we’re going to get hit hard,” she said.

Crawford said donations to the kettle so far has been generous, but she suspects overall donations might take a hit this year as well due to the pandemic.

“Some of the people that would donate to Salvation Army are themselves having problems,” she said.

Crawford said a virtual kettle is being developed so people can donate online, but she doesn’t have details just yet.

She said people can also donate using Google Play and Apple if they don’t have physical money on them but want to donate when they see the bell ringers.

Potential donations can also be sent in the form of checks to their PO Box; 418 Havre Montana 59501.

Salvation Army Havre is also in the midst of running their Christmas Food Basket program which, Crawford said, will function identically to this year’s Thanksgiving Food Baskets.

People have until Dec. 16 to sign up for them, she said.

She said people planning to sign-up, or who have already, should make sure the phone number and email they sign up with is working and they bring the necessary documentation, similar to the programs mentioned earlier.

The issue of non-functional phone numbers was a problem during the sign-ups for the Thanksgiving Food Baskets.

Crawford said a few people have gotten back and fixed their phone numbers, but a lot of people still need to make sure their applications are complete.

“We want people to get help,” she said.

During these unusual and stressful times, Crawford said, it’s more important than ever that people in need reach out.

“I want to not only encourage people to give, but to people who may really need some help this year to just get signed up with us because we really want to help,” she said. “We want to help as much as we can.”