Hot Diggity-Dog helps fund Salvation Army

The Salvation Army Hot Springs Women’s Auxiliary will host the eighth annual Hot Diggity-Dog grab-and-go lunch fundraiser on the front lawn of the Garland County Court House on Tuesday.

The proceeds collected from hot dog lunch sales and any donations received will go toward The Salvation Army’s various children’s projects, including summer camp and character building classes, fundraising Co-Chairwoman Donna Blackwood said.

“We’re getting more and more children (enrolling in programs) and we decided to (raise funds) for the children this year,” she said.

The grab-and-go lunches include a hot dog, beverage, chips and a sweet treat. They will begin serving meals for $5 each at 11:30 a.m. and conclude at 1:30 p.m.

According to Salvation Army Lieutenant Stephanie Hargis, the cause the Women’s Auxiliary chose to assist will positively impact local youths. The organization offers an after-school feeding program where students not only get a meal but also learn about Christ and attend character building courses.

“A lot of these kids we have (enrolled in after-school programs) are underprivileged. This provides a safe space for them to go and for us to invest in their lives and help them

learn the skills they will need as adults,” Hargis said.

During the summer, The Salvation Army sends local children to a character building summer camp. Many of the students enrolled would otherwise not have the opportunity to attend a summer camp if it were not for The Salvation Army, she said.

Due to the nature of many of the students’ economic situations, many families cannot feasibly provide the child with summer camp necessities like extra toiletries, snack food, and towels, Hargis said. The proceeds from the event will help ensure each child enrolled in summer camp has all the basic necessities to make their camp experience memorable.

The Women’s Auxiliary “tries to raise as much money as we can to help everything that goes on at the corps,” Blackwood said.