General News
3 July, 2025
Make every donation count
THE Ararat Salvation Army is making sure every donation is directed exactly where it’s needed.
With rising demand for support and the cost-of-living impacting families, Major Jacky Targett and her team are focused on transparency and trust when it comes to community contributions.
“If it’s donated to the shop, it gets sold in the shop,” said Major Targett.
The organisation’s op shop plays a major role in raising funds to support the local community.
“What gets sold in the shop gets fed back into the community, whether it’s emergency relief, the community meal, providing a truck of water to people out of town who had no money for water, for the homeless, all that sort of thing. We try to give out as much as we get in,” Major Targett explained.
She said donors often bring in specific items, such as blankets, and request they go to the homeless.
“They will go aside so they specifically go to the homeless,” she said.
“That same principle applies to financial donations, if people bring us stuff, it might be a cash donation, and if they say to us, it’s for A, B and C, that’s where it goes.”
Major Targett said the Ararat Salvos are often called upon in times of natural disaster as well.
“If we have bushfire or flood relief, people bring down items and say, ‘I want this to go to there.’ We do what the donors ask us to do,” she said.
Plans are already underway for Christmas assistance in outer communities, with both Melbourne-based and local funds supporting this work.
“I am planning pop-up Christmases in some of our outer communities,” Major Targett said adding that any additional support is always appreciated.
“If anyone wants to donate to support our Christmas pop-up, to support the communities out of town that have been hard hit, then by all means come and see us and just say, ‘Hey, this is for the Christmas pop-up,’ and that’s where it will go. If it’s specifically given to us for a toy drive, for the homeless, for a women’s group, for Red Shield, whatever it is, it goes to that particular department. There are people who give to the toy run, and that goes to the toy run,” she said.
The Salvos have expressed deep gratitude for the continued generosity of the Ararat community, especially those donating new, unused items such as kitchenware, books, clothing and toys, each one helping to support those in need.
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