Fayetteville Salvation Army, Observer launch annual Bill Shaw Christmas Fund

It is the holiday season. You can’t have missed the steady march of Christmas decorations into retail establishments.

For the Salvation Army of the Sandhills, the holidays hit a bit differently. Always busy, the folks who operate out of the East Russell Street offices get even busier.

Tim Grider, who along with his wife, Cheryl, heads up the chapter, said Thursday evening they were right then in the process of delivering their trademark red kettles — 32 total spread over six counties.

I remember as a child, now many years ago, seeing the Salvation Army bell-ringers at Cross Creek Mall and around the city. I especially admired those ringers who stood outside stores on cold days and nights, bundled up against the cold weather. They seemed to me the picture of dedication, and I always tried to put something in the kettle.

I still feel that way about the ringers.

But they are also only one part of the story.

Since 1923, The Fayetteville Observer — the state’s oldest continuously publishing newspaper — has partnered with the Salvation Army on the Bill Shaw Salvation Army Christmas Fund. The fund has raised millions to help people in Cumberland County and beyond, for the holidays and during the year, too. It is named for the late Observer photographer who for years managed the fund and was one of its top advocates.

Leaning on the Fayetteville ‘village’

The Shaw fundraiser leans heavily on the “village,” you and me. It is powered by donations from individuals, families, organizations — anyone who wants to help give a nice Christmas to our friends and neighbors in need.

As usual, we will publish a running tally of donors to give people just a little bit of “shine” for their generosity. (You can also donate anonymously if you wish.)

In 2021, as the nation was still recovering from the wreck of the pandemic, the fund raised $126,000, and last year, it surpassed that amount by almost $30,000 — despite inflation and other economic stressors our community has endured along with the country.

Grider said the fund has a standing goal of $300,000, so there is our task.

How to donate

Write your tax-deductible check to the Bill Shaw Salvation Army Christmas Fund and mail it to the Salvation Army, P.O. Box 110, Fayetteville, NC, 28302 or drop it off between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at 220 E. Russell St., Fayetteville, NC 28301. You can also donate online at southernusa.salvationarmy.org/sandhills.

Super volunteers and unsung heroes

Inside the fund’s success and its embrace by the community is the hard work of many typically unsung heroes.

They include:

• Volunteers Billy Shields and Dale Chason, who basically do it all. Grider says they help with kettles; disaster relief; Veterans Affairs events; Angel Tree warehouse distribution; the thrift store and various repairs, as needed.

“Indeed,” says Grider, “they are ‘super volunteers.’”

• Bob Exum, a lifetime board member who continues to both lead and assist with the Bill Shaw fund.

“He‘s one of the remaining originals from when it first began,” Grider said.

Food, shelter and after-school programs for children

I frequently write about the Salvation Army from the perspective of its shelter, which serves meals and is also a “white flag” destination for the homeless community when temperatures dip below freezing.

In the course of a year, the shelter served 38,204 meals and provided 18,000 nights of shelter, including 22 families with members of six to 10 people each, according to Grider.

The Salvation Army has served 4,000 children in its Community Center’s after-school and summer day camps.

Meanwhile, it has already given out of its Angel Tree applications.

“We reached our Angel Tree cap numbers in only four days — a record,” he said, noting that the tree had shown its “highest need” in the six years he and Cheryl have been in Fayetteville.

“All in spite of only a handful of volunteers, being well understaffed and community financial support dropped 41%,” he said.

The Bill Shaw fund could not be more important this year as we head toward winter. And there is clearly room for even more folks to step up — and I believe and hope the village will.

Myron B. Pitts can be reached at mpitts@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3559.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Giving time: Fayetteville Salvation Army, Observer kick off Shaw Christmas fund