Donations to the Salvation Army’s Kettle Campaign were down slightly from last Christmas but the inaugural Santa Shuffle more than made up the difference.

“We were about $800 short of last year’s income from the kettles,” said Major Sharleen McTaggart.

The total was about $189,000 from donations dropped in kettles over the holiday period, but another $5,500 came in from the Santa Shuffle.

The Santa Shuffle is a one-kilometre run or five-km walk sponsored by the Running Room in support of the Salvation Army. Though the event has run for some time, it arrived in Kamloops only last year when the chain opened its first store here.

McTaggart said the kettle campaign was short of volunteers in early December until a community appeal added reinforcements.

“We were just flooded with new volunteers,” she said.

National results for the Kettle Campaign were not available on Wednesday. Last season, Kamloops placed fifth in B.C. for generosity.