Hayden Croff of Marquette, a Northern Michigan University student and Christmas coordinator for The Salvation Army of Marquette, picks up toys from the Cheer Club at The Mining Journal office in downtown Marquette on Dec. 5. Gifts collected by the Cheer Club were distributed to local families in need earlier this month by The Salvation Army of Marquette County and St. Vincent de Paul of Marquette. (Journal file photo)

MARQUETTE — The Salvation Army of Marquette County’s “Rescue Christmas” initiative garnered many financial and gift donations for families in need this holiday season, officials said.

The organization reported Wednesday morning that $98,678.40 was raised through its annual Red Kettle campaign, exceeding its target of $90,000 by 9%.

That number still has potential to grow, though, as online donations through virtual Red Kettles are still being tabulated.

“The money that is raised goes directly back into the community,” said Capt. Doug Winters of The Salvation Army. “This allows us to continue the services we provide at the higher level of need that we are seeing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The Red Kettle campaign is a volunteer effort supported by various groups and organizations in the community each holiday season. Groups that volunteered this year included the Noon Rotary Club of Marquette, Noon Kiwanis of Ishpeming, Action Physical Therapy and the Marquette City Fire Department.

Local police and fire units also held a bell-ringing competition this year, raising over $6,000 in a four-hour span the week before Christmas.

“The volunteers are so critical to our Red Kettle drive,” Winters said. “We saw so many volunteers this year that went out multiple times to help with this effort.”

Those who volunteered for two-hour shifts were also eligible to enter a drawing for one of three gift certificates to Jandrons Fine Jewelry, which the store offered as an incentive for people to volunteer.

Red Kettle efforts support year-round programs for The Salvation Army, such as its free lunch program, which served an average of 139 meals per day to individuals in need in December. The lunch program saw a 200% increase this year, serving 17,728 meals since the onset of the pandemic in March.

The Red Kettle tradition began in 1891 when Salvation Army Capt. Joseph McFee had the urge to feed hungry citizens in the San Francisco area. In order to provide a free Christmas dinner to those in need, he set out an iron kettle on Market Street in order to fund the initiative. Through his efforts, he was able to feed 1,000 poverty-stricken individuals on Christmas Day.

Over the next six years, McFee’s idea spread to the East Coast, which resulted in 150,000 Christmas dinners to those in need in 1897. Today, The Salvation Army assists more than 4.5 million people during the holiday season through Red Kettle initiatives.

The Salvation Army’s Christmas Toy Shop program also saw many donations this year. The program distributes new, unwrapped toys and gifts to registered families in need.

Around 3,800 items were collected this holiday season through programs such as Walmart’s Angel Tree campaign, Toys for Tots and The Mining Journal’s Cheer Club. The Salvation Army then distributes those items through its Toy Shop at the Westwood Mall in Marquette, which had a curbside pickup format this year due to COVID-19.

Officials said 312 families and 749 children were supported in this year’s Toy Shop efforts, a 15% increase over 2019.

Items donated included toys, games, books and nearly 30 children’s bicycles; 22 of which were donated by Marthaler Automotive of Marquette through the Journal’s Cheer Club.

For more information on The Salvation Army’s holiday initiatives, visit www.RescueChristmas.org. For those who are in need of assistance or know of someone in need, call 906-226-2241 for more information.

Ryan Spitza can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 248. His email address is rspitza@miningjournal.net.