Silver Valley Community Christmas Fund seeks donations

WALLACE –– Every year, the generous people of Shoshone County dig deep into their pockets in support of the Silver Valley Community Christmas Fund to make sure no one goes hungry during the holidays.

But, according to Shoshone County Clerk Tamie Lewis-Eberhard, the need may be greater than in previous years. 

Since its inception in the 1990s, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been raised to provide holiday meals for local families, as well as supplement the Silver Valley Meals on Wheels program.

“Donations received through this event allow us to provide gift certificates to families in need and allow them to purchase holiday dinner items at local grocery stores,” Eberhard said. “The amount of the gift certificate depends on the number of family members in the household. In previous years we’ve provided meals to over 1,000 people using these gift certificates. We also donated thousands of dollars annually to our Senior Meals on Wheels program, which has also had to change the way they provide meals to our seniors.” 

In years past, the Silver Valley Community Christmas Fund would raise funds during a special day-long telethon, hosted by either KWAL 620 AM Radio or the Shoshone News-Press with Dave Smith Motors as a major sponsor, but with the closure of the News-Press office in Osburn, the fundraiser is in another transitional season. 

This year, Dave Smith is still a major donor, but there will be no special event or telethon to raise the funds – That doesn’t change the fact that the need still exists. 

In lieu of the traditional telethon event, Eberhard is going old school, with a traditional mailer campaign. 

She will be reaching out to previous donors, as well as hoping to reach new donors through advertisements, articles, social media, and posting flyers throughout the community. 

“Making ends meet during historic levels of inflation has been tough on a lot of people,” Eberhard said. “Families shouldn’t have to go without a nice Christmas dinner. Our community has always looked out for each other and the consistent success of this fundraiser is a testament to their generosity.”

Annually, the goal of the fundraiser is to hit $20,000 – this more than covers the costs of the meals while also making a sizeable donation to the Meals on Wheels program. 

Donations can be mailed to Eberhard at Dave Smith Christmas Fund, 700 Bank Street, Ste. 120, Wallace, ID.  83873.