Thrivent match day brings in $299,132

APPLETON - Residents of the Fox Cities showed off their giving spirit. It was a one way pushed encouraged by an area business to support the Appleton chapter of the Salvation Army.  

Thrivent Financial announced the results of Friday's Red Kettle Match Day. Add the company's match to the community's donations and it was almost $300,000.

The Thrivent Financial match day is something many people wait for all year. Dropping coins and bills by the thousands into red kettles across the Fox Valley. The result this year, $299,132.

Thrivent matched $125,000 meaning just short of $175,000 was donated in one day. The donation represents nearly one-quarter of the Salvation Army's $1.2 million goal for the year and officials say there is still plenty of time to donate at the kettles.

"It's not just a big help, it's huge, it's really hard to explain the excitement of this kind of a day, but it's not just that one day, we've got the rest of the season of giving," said Salvation Army-Fox Cities Captain Randy Tooley.

The total pushed Thrivent's giving past the $2 million mark since it began match days in 2004.

"Year over year we see that people in the Fox Cities step up and this is another year that shows it," said Thrivent Financial senior advisor Peter Gianopoulos.
 
Tooley says the Thrivent match day is a bellwether for how the end of the year giving might go.

"The people in the community when they know there is a need they are going to step up so these are the exciting times."

Giving in great numbers for those who need help the most.

Salvation Army leaders say they are still in need of bell ringers. Click here to sign up.