With inflation on the minds of many this holiday season, charitable organizations like the Salvation Army are feeling the pinch.
A recent retail survey shows 7 in 10 consumers plan to spend less on holiday shopping this year. And many families reeling from inflation are relying on nonprofits to help fill in the gaps with toys, clothing, and food. So far this season Winston-Salem Salvation Army is down a few thousand dollars in red kettle donations, online giving is slightly up, but food is where inflation may be having the biggest impact.
The agency distributes about 30,000 pounds of it each month, and Director of Marketing and Public Relations Bob Campbell estimates this season there’s been a 10% increase in the number of clients he sees at their pantries in Winston-Salem and Kernersville.
"More people who we’ve never seen before," says Campbell. "We have some folks who are regulars at our food pantries — specifically we have a lot of seniors who depend on our pantries who are on fixed incomes. And so we’re seeing them, but then we’re also seeing folks we’ve never seen before."
Campbell says there are now online options for giving, including QR codes, and payment by Venmo or even cryptocurrency, and he’s hopeful other these more recent income streams will help.