Salvation Army looks to ‘Match Day’ for donation boost

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - Throughout this holiday season the Salvation Army is seeing an uptick in assistance needed, so they are relying on donations.

On Saturday, December 12th, the non-profit will have a ‘Match Day’ in hopes of a financial boost.

Thanks to Salvation Army sponsor One American Bank and anonymous donors, $20 on Saturday will go a long way.

“For every $20 bill we receive, or checks giving in $20 increments, that will be matched with $80 to turn it into $100. That’s a big fundraiser for us, we typically raise about 1/3 of our red kettle goal through our Match Day,” said Community Relations Director at the Salvation Army Marcie Priestley.

A $20 donation given online will also be matched.

The Salvation Army says they are in need of more donations this holiday season, as the pandemic is causing a larger demand for help.

“It’s important for us for our overall fundraising campaign, but this year it’s even more important. We just wrapped up doing our Christmas basket applications and we had 260 more applications than we had in 2019,” Priestley said.

At kettles across the Sioux Empire, you can also donate on your phone as well via Apple and Google pay.

Kettles were set out in front of stores in mid-November and will be there until Christmas Eve. An early report says donations are down, but Salvation Army staff is optimistic.

“Right now, we do know that the kettles are behind what they typically are, but we anticipated that. This will be my 8th Christmas here and this is a very generous community,” said Priestley.

Kettles will be out Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and you can also donate online here.