Carol Bua, left, the city of Vancouver’s communications manager, donates money to Salvation Army bell ringers Amy Ohara, center, and Eric Sawyer, who are on the board of directors for the Greater Vancouver Chamber of Commerce, Wednesday at the Grand Central Station Fred Meyer in Vancouver. Wednesday was the annual Kettle Kickoff, which pits the Chamber of Commerce against the city of Vancouver to see who can raise the most money. The chamber has won the last three years.
The Salvation Army has 78 red kettles stationed in spots around Clark County that raise money for the nonprofit’s local programs, such as rental, food and housing assistance, and its annual Christmas Center, where food and toys are given to 800 local families.
However, coordinator Dewer Webber said he’s down 15 paid employees, and volunteer hours dropped 30 percent this year from last year. “It’s a big hit to us,” Webber said. He added that donations are down from where they would normally be this time of year.