With Christmas rapidly approaching, Hancock County gift-giving campaigns are at their peak. Organizers running the initiatives, however, still need help, and there is still plenty of time to help out as a donor or volunteer during the holidays. These local programs are still seeking assistance:
Christmas Connection
Hancock County’s largest holiday charitable campaign for the year is Christmas Connection, operated by Love INC. The campaign matches families in need during the holiday season with churches, organizations and individual donors who can help.
Applications for families in need were accepted through Greenfield-Central and Mt. Vernon schools. The organization is still seeking donations and will continue to pair families in need with donors throughout December.
Those in need of assistance or looking to make a donation may contact Love INC at 317-468-6300 or email [email protected].
Salvation Army
Red Kettle Campaign
One of the most familiar symbols of holiday charitable giving is the Salvation Army bell ringer. In Hancock County, the famous Christmastime fundraiser is the primary source of funding for the local chapter.
The county’s Salvation Army chapter has no paid staff, local office or major fundraisers, service representative Jill Null said.
“Basically, what we have is that red kettle and the bells,” Null said.
Salvation Army bell-ringers are stationed outside the Greenfield locations of Walmart and Kroger, as well as part time outside Needler’s Fresh Market in New Palestine. Anyone interested in going beyond making a donation to volunteer as a bell-ringer can sign up at RegisterToRing.com. Volunteers can serve in two-hour shifts on any day of the week.
Donations via check can also be made out to Hancock County Salvation Army and mailed to Salvation Army, First Presbyterian Church, 116 West South Street in Greenfield.
Null said many nonprofits in Hancock County support worthy causes, but the Salvation Army provides essential direct financial assistance to many families. Some ask for assistance with rent or utility payments, Null said, but approximately 305 of the people the organization served in 2019 needed help with medical expenses.
Many county residents, Null said, are uninsured or find that the health insurance they have does not prevent financial catastrophe. A typical Salvation Army client, she said, was a man whose family was middle class until he found himself out of work for a year due to cancer treatment.
Null said the Red Kettle campaign becomes more difficult each year due to factors like the number of other nonprofits seeking donations and the increasing popularity of online shopping. Still, she said, the tradition has value beyond just the monetary — it’s also how many parents teach their children about philanthropy.
The local Red Kettle campaign raised approximately $40,000 last year, Null said, and it would be exciting to equal that amount in 2019.
“It’s just a real joy to own stewardship of those funds and to see the good it does in the community,” Null said.
Gift Lift
One Hancock County program is providing Christmas gifts, including essential personal care items and other requests, to disabled and elderly people living in residential facilities.
Mental Health Partners director Kim Hall said the program has been running since the 1970s and typically receives about 300 requests per year. The organization contacts group homes and assisted-living facilities in the county, which gives residents the opportunity to fill out a form requesting gifts they want. Volunteer shoppers then purchase the gifts, which will be wrapped on Dec. 16.
Mental Health Partners is accepting donations of money and of personal care items for the program through Friday, Dec. 13. Donations can be dropped off at the organization’s office at 98 E. North Street, Suite 204, in Greenfield during office hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 317-462-2877.
“Now is the time that we have the greatest need,” Hall said. “We want to continue to spread the holiday cheer to these individuals.”
Greenfield Sertoma
Santa’s Helpers, a national program, is operated locally by service organization Greenfield Sertoma. Its objective is to help families in need purchase winter clothing for their children.
Families are referred to the program by Love INC’s Christmas Connection. Sertoma has been raising money for the program through a number of methods, including a direct mailing campaign and selling pies at area events. Administrative costs for the program are paid by Sertoma.
“That money all goes to the kids,” volunteer David Berard said.
Monetary donations can be mailed to Greenfield Sertoma at P.O. Box 43, Greenfield, IN, 46140.
Toys for Tots
Toys for Tots is a national program run by the United States Marine Corps that helps provide Christmas gifts to children in need. The local chapter will be distributing gifts through Christmas Connection this year.
To make a donation directly to Greenfield Toys for Tots, visit greenfield-in.toysfortots.org. Families in need can apply to receive gifts through the website or contact Love INC.
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