Salvation Army of Livingston County Receives a Golden Donation

The Salvation Army of Livingston County got a delightful surprise when two gold bars - worth about $1,600 each - were deposited into a red kettle outside the retail doors at the Genoa Township Walmart on Friday.

Livingston Daily identified the anonymous gold donor as Frank Wittman, a Brighton Township resident, on Tuesday.

Wittman has been donating gold bars every holiday season for several years, according to Captain Aaron Ortman, corps officer of The Salvation Army of Livingston County.

"We've gotten the gold bar donations every year for many, many years," Ortman said. "It goes back to before my wife and I were here."

Ortman, who has been with the Salvation Army of Livingston County for four holiday seasons, said his first year they received one gold bar and for the last three years, they have received two gold bars.

"Every time we get them, the person wraps the gold bars in $100 bills," he said.

Every year, the donation is always received at same location - the retail doors at the Genoa Township Walmart.

"A donation like that is very significant because we sell the gold - so it was basically a $3,200 donation," Ortman said. "It's a huge boost to our campagin and it's a nice story because it gets the word out about what Salvation Army is doing in the community."

The Salvation Army of Livingston County’s Red Kettle Campaign goal for 2011 is $337,000 and is currently $86,000 short of that goal.

Wittman told Livingston Daily he donates the gold each year because "You've got to do something with them. I'm not going to take them with me."

This week marks the last full week that The Salvation Army’s bell ringers will be at their posts – ringing until 6:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve.  While the bells will go silent after Christmas, The Salvation Army continues to take donations, via mail, walk-in and on-line at www.salvationarmylivingston.org.