The new Tap to Give kettle unveiled by the Kamloops Salvation Army over the weekend (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Chad Klassen

KETTLE CAMPAIGN

With drop in volunteers, kettle donations, Salvation Army hopes ‘Tap To Give’ kettles give campaign a boost

Dec 7, 2020 | 4:29 PM

KAMLOOPS — Nearly a month into this year’s kettle campaign, the Salvation Army has seen a drop in the number of donations, and that is partly due to a severe lack of volunteers.

According to Captain Cory Fifield, COVID-19 and other factors have worked to reduce the organization’s volunteer base by a third and he says those were the people who would man the kettles regularly. The Salvation Army is desperate for people to step up and help out.

“We’ve got three or four locations that are outdoors this year and those are the locations where we’re really having a hard time filling them,” said Fifield. “We’ve got two a liquor stores, then we’ve got Save-On-Foods outdoors and London Drugs, so those are the four locations for us right now where if we can get those filled. The ones that are out are doing amazing.”

The number of kettles out in Kamloops is nine compared to 13 last year. It has resulted in a $15,000 drop in donations versus this time last year.

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The Kamloops Salvation Army is hoping the new ‘Tap To Give’ kettles will give a boost to the campaign. Five such kettles were unveiled in the city this weekend, allowing shoppers simply to tap their debit or credit card to make a quick $5 donation. People can tap up to 10 times.