POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI)– The Salvation Army Pocatello Corps is asking people in the area to help them buy a new box truck, after a recent breakdown left them without the necessary equipment for their community support programs.
The Pocatello Salvation Army lost their last treasured truck when an engine failure ground the 15-foot vehicle, and the programs it helps support, to a halt.
“It is totally unusable, and it’s really caused issues for us to continue to do what we do on the day to day basis here,” said Mareah Makowski, ministry leader for the Salvation Army Pocatello Corps. “From food collections and picking things up, bringing things in, taking things out––we’re really worried about when Christmas time comes around, how we’re going to get things like our kettles out to the locations, how we’re going to pick up toys and bring them into us so we can pass them out.”
The Pocatello Salvation Army serves around 50 local people daily through their soup kitchen, food pantry, and clothing donations.
During Christmas, Salvation Army leaders coordinate dozens of volunteers for their Red Kettle donation drives from the Pocatello headquarters, and last year, the Salvation Army Pocatello Corps brought Christmas gifts to over 600 area kids during their Christmas Angel program.
Pocatello Salvation Army leaders say their box truck has been a vital resource in helping them fulfill their mission to serve people in the Portneuf Valley, and now they are asking people to help them raise the $25,000 they need to replace their vehicle.
“We would really appreciate the community’s help,” said Makowski. “…It is very important for the Pocatello area to have programs like this because that’s what community is: we take care of each other, we look out for each other, and that’s all that we try to do here is we try to serve our community and love on our community the best that we can––we just need the necessary tools to do that.”
Makowski said they would like to have a new box truck ready for action by the end of June. For more information, you can visit the Salvation Army Pocatello Corps website.
To support the Salvation Army’s box truck fund, you can mail or deliver donations to the Pocatello headquarters at 400 N. 4th Ave.
