Vernon Salvation Army Over the Top (Kelowna Also !)

Tue, 2009-12-29 08:47. Betty Selin - Vernon

Thanks to the generosity of North Okanagan residents and the many volunteers the Vernon Salvation Army has exceeded their Christmas Kettle Campaign goal of 110-thousand dollars. Spokesperson, David MacBain says they have been overwhelmed with the support of the community. The Salvation Army received 125-thousand dollars in donations, up from 100-thousand last year. MacBain says demand at the food bank has been up about 26 percent, but they only increased their financial goal by ten per cent. He says the funds will go a long way to help those in need.

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By Kathy Michaels Kelowna.com: Tuesday, December 29th, 2009 Kelowna kettle campaign surpasses expectations

Despite a lagging economy, the Salvation Army’s Christmas kettle campaign blew past expectations. The army’s Kevin Mack said Kelowna kettle donations were tallied today and they added up to $239,000 — far surpassing this year’s goal of $212,000 and last year’s high of $205,000. The online donation iKettle program raised an additional $6,995. “People were very generous,” said Mack. “Nationally the kettles were down significantly, so to do as well as we did here is wonderful — Kelowna is a generous community and they prove that time and time again.”