Share the Season donations down from last year’s campaign

Giving is down slightly for the Share the Season program this year, which offers one-time aid to people affected by unexpected hardships.

At this time last year, the organization had received $184,000 in donations. As of Friday, the organization had raised $177,000.

“I also checked the day before Christmas last year, and we had raised $224,000 and brought in $40,000 in five days,” said Shelly Prichard, president and CEO of the Wichita Community Foundation, which operates the program along with the Salvation Army and The Eagle. “So we really don’t know – but the numbers so far we have seen coming in have been a little lower, so that does seem to be following the trend of what we are hearing from other agencies.”

The deadline for people wanting to apply for aid with Share the Season ended Sunday.

The average recipient receives help toward paying utility or medical bills. Payments are made directly to creditors.

Since Thanksgiving Day, The Eagle has featured a daily story of someone in need. Those who are featured remain anonymous, but their need will be verified by the Salvation Army.

Share the Season is a grassroots approach in which the majority of donors send what they can – $5, $10 or $25 – while some contribute more. Last year, 1,121 donors gave more than $258,000 to help 200 families in need.

The original concept for the program came when local philanthropist Mary Lynn Oliver told Wichita Community Foundation leaders about a program in Santa Fe, N.M., called the Empty Stocking Fund. That served as the prototype for Share the Season.

Prichard said Sunday that the community foundation has received many letters that reflected heartfelt thanks and gratitude.

“One woman sent a thank-you and wrote ‘I can now smile again,’ ” Prichard said. “She had an illness in the family and was struggling. Share the Season was able to help her. When she was told she had been chosen for Share the Season, she wrote she began crying tears of joy and couldn’t quit.”

So far, 145 families have been helped this year through Share the Season, said Cheryl Warne, director of the Salvation Army’s emergency social and disaster service.

“These are people who have done everything they could possibly do before asking for help,” Warne said. “It continues to be hard for people to ask. These are folks who typically don’t.”

Donations usually continue to come into the Wichita Community Foundation throughout the Christmas season into the New Year.

“It typically takes a few days to process applications, and we wrap the program up around Christmas,” Prichard said. “We try to give the Salvation Army workers time to process as many applications as they can and help as many people as we can.”

Share the Season typically uses some of the money to help jump-start the next year’s campaign.

“We like to start the program with a little bit of funds, because sometimes the need we get early on gets ahead of the donations,” Prichard said. “We keep a little bit to start back helping people right away.”

This story was originally published December 20, 2015 at 8:23 PM with the headline "Share the Season donations down from last year’s campaign."