Saskatonians show their generosity in the lead up to Christmas

It looks like a last minute outpouring of support will help Saskatoon’s Salvation Army meet their goal in the lead-up to Christmas.

“Last week we were really quite nervous about making our goal,” said Heather Hedstrom, community and donations advisor for the Salvation Army in Saskatoon.

Hedstrom said more than $100,000 has poured in over the past week alone.

They now sit at around $285,000, well within reach of their $300,000 dollar goal. Hedstrom said people have responded to a call to the public that was put out last week.
 
“So we are very confident that we will make our goal, which is a strong necessity because we have seen an increase in requirement of our services,” Hedstom said. “It’s almost like people are taking that extra effort to go to the bank and make sure that they have some cash to put into our kettles.” 
 
Saskatoon’s Friendship Inn is also on track to meet its goal for the season. They expect to serve Christmas dinner to as many as a 1000 people this year, about the same as last year.
 
However, both organizers said they could always use more to help get them through the slow January period.