ASHLAND — Leaders of four nonprofit agencies in Boyd, Greenup and Carter counties are hoping that the 22nd annual Needy Families Fund campaign will enable them to make Christmas a little brighter for approximately 900 low-income families that include nearly 2,000 children.

That’s how many have been identified by CAReS and the Salvation Army in Boyd County, Helping Hands in Greenup County and Project Merry Christmas in Carter County as legitimately needing assistance. Money raised by the Needy Families Fund will purchase enough food for each family for a Christmas dinner and will buy toys, socks, underwear and other clothing for the children, said J. Stewart Schneider, pastor of Community Presbyterian Church, who is again overseeing the collection of campaign funds through CAReS’ offices in The Neighborhood, the former Johnson’s Dairy Building at Carter Avenue and 25th Street.

As in past years, 100 percent of the money donated through the Needy Families Fund goes for the four participating agencies. The Ashland Citadel of the Salvation Army and CAReS each receive 40 percent of the donations, while Helping Hands and Project Merry Christmas each receive 10 percent of the contributions.

The campaign begins today and will continue through Christmas. As in past years, The Independent will list the names of organizations, families and individuals who contribute to the campaign unless they request to remain anonymous.

The Needy Families Fund was launched in 1988 by former Independent Publisher John DelSanto, and for the first 20 years, collections were funneled through The Independent. A year ago, the four participating agencies took over the collection of donations with giving going though CAReS instead of the newspaper.

From the start the change worked well, said Schneider, and last year’s campaign garnered nearly $40,000 in donations. While not a record, it was considered exceptional for a year in which the local economy was far from thriving.

The economy continues to be poor in the three counties and that has some of the participating agencies concerned.

“We’re already feeling the effect of the economy,” said Capt. Tex Ellis of the Salvation Army. “We are still having the same number of contributors as we have always had, but the size of their gifts is down a bit. I tell people that what may have been a $100 gift in the past is now closer to being $10. People are being a little more cautious with their spending. They are still helping, but they just aren’t able to help as much.”

At the same time the Salvation Army is benefiting from the Needy Families Fund, it is collecting donations through its annual kettle campaign at area shopping venues. Together the Needy Family Fund and the kettle campaign account for about half the donations the Salvation Army receives each year, Ellis said. Much more than just raising money for the holidays, he said the money raised at Christmas “generally caries us into July or August.”

Schneider said the demand for services provided by CAReS and the other three non-profit agencies always increases as the local economy sours. However, he said he is confident the 2009 campaign will be a success.

Schneider said his wife, CAReS employee Kathy Schneider, said if everyone in the three counties contributed just $2, it would raise more than enough money for the four agencies to meet many of the needs of the poor.

“Of course, I don’t expect everyone to give $2 and I hope a lot of people give a lot more than $2,” Schneider said. “But that just shows that even when times are hard, we have the resources in this region to meet these needs. All we have to do is have the faith that both the agencies and ourselves will be blessed by our gifts. Giving is really just a leap of faith.”

Scarlett Grubb, the executive director of Helping Hands, said the Needy Families Fund is “is very important to us. We are a small nonprofit agency that serves all of Greenup County. If we don’t do it, it doesn’t get done in Greenup County.”

About 75 percent of Helping Hands funds come through private donations with the Needy Families Fund being a major source of those gifts, said Grubb.

Helping Hands expects to provide food to about 200 families this Christmas, and 110 have signed up to receive gifts through the agencies, Grubb said. “These are all pre-school children. The older children get help through the schools, but for these little ones, we may be the only Christmas they have,” she said.

Despite the economy, Grubb said she is not really worried about the giving this Christmas. “I have learned that this is a very giving community,” she said. “If we have a need, I have faith that the Lord will meet that need.”

Grubb said even some families who have received food from Helping Hands have made contributions to the agency. “They don’t have much, but they are willing a give a little of what they do have,” she said. “That’s just the kind of people we have in this community.”

Project Merry Christmas, now in its 27th year, provides toys, clothing and shoes to more than 600 Carter County children and provide a Christmas meal of ham and turkey to more than 300 families. The family resource centers in Carter County help identify the children and families in need of assistance.

Contributions to the campaign can be mailed to the Needy Families Fund, c/o CAReS, P.O. Box 1503, Ashland, Ky. 4005-1503, or delivered to the CAReS offices in The Neighborhood.

JOHN CANNON can be reached at jcannon@dailyindependent.com or at (606) 326-2649.