Salvation Army receives 3 more gold coins in suburban kettles

CHICAGO – The Salvation Army received three more gold coins in area kettles, two of them in Lake County.

In Antioch, a 1/10-ounce American Gold Eagle $5 coin was donated Dec. 14 in a kettle outside the Jewel-Osco, 966 Route 59. The coin, worth about $200, will help fund programs and services at The Salvation Army Waukegan Corps.

In Vernon Hills, a 1977 Russia Gold 100 Roubles Moscow Olympics coin was dropped Dec. 19 in a kettle outside Walmart, 555 E. Townline Road. The coin, worth about $800, will benefit programs and services at The Salvation Army Waukegan Corps Community Center.

In St. Charles, a 1978 Russia Gold 100 Roubles Moscow Olympics coin in a protective case was dropped Dec. 18 in a kettle outside the Jewel-Osco, 2073 Prairie St. The coin, worth about $1,200, will benefit programs and services at The Salvation Army Tri-City Corps Community Center in St. Charles.

The donations bring the number of gold and silver coins donated in Salvation Army red kettles in the Metropolitan Division to 30. This includes donations in Rockford and northwest Indiana.

“It never ceases to amaze me how caring and generous our community is,” said Lt. Scott Smith, corps officer for The Salvation Army Tri-City Corps. “We’ve been given another incredible blessing in this season of uncertainty and need.”

The Salvation Army launched the Rescue Christmas campaign nearly two months early this year to meet a significant increase in the number of requests for food and emergency financial assistance. Some Salvation Army locations in the Chicago area have seen as much as a fivefold increase in need since the start of the pandemic.

The last night of the red kettles was Dec. 24, but people still can donate to the Rescue Christmas campaign online through Jan. 31 at www.salarmychristmas.org.