He won't know for sure until the final deposit is counted late this morning, but Capt. Neil Wilkinson remains optimistic the local Salvation Army kettle campaign will reach its $250,000 goal.
I'm praying hard, Wilkinson said on Boxing Day, but I'm cautiously optimistic we'll hit the goal.
As of midday Saturday the kettle campaign had already raised $232,000 but still had $18,000 to go to meet the quarter-million target. Any money brought in after 2 p.m. on Saturday as well anything donated by last-minute shoppers and others out and about on Christmas Eve will be part of the final deposit. Wilkinson has had a look at what was brought in during the final push and thinks there's likely enough in the kitty to push the annual drive over the top.
Nationally, the Salvation Army hoped to raise $21 million through donations to the kettles and as of Dec. 20, $16.4 million had been counted. The goal in B.C. was $4.1 million.
The money is used in local communities across the country for programs like food banks. Across Canada the Salvation Army estimates it serves about 1.8 million Canadians.
In addition to the traditional kettles at stores and malls around the city, the Salvation Army was also encouraging donations online and through debit machines at participating retailers.
All kettle campaigns are administered locally.
The Prince George Tree of Life fundraiser is still about $20,000 short of its target of $50,000 and Wilkinson said they may not know the final results until the end of this week or even early next week as the money continues to come in from partner organizations. Wilkinson had said at the Tree of Lights launch event this year's target was ambitious, but he said Wednesday he's holding out hope it's still within reach.
We're hoping for a Christmas miracle with the Tree of Life, he said. I'm still hoping and praying we'll hit the goal.
