NATCHEZ — The Natchez chapter of the Salvation Army will close its doors Monday, due to slow thrift store sales and high crime, a spokesman said.

The state chapter of the non-profit organization notified local board members of the closure with a letter dated Nov. 2.

And at least one local board member is disappointed in the decision. Albert Metcalfe, a board member for approximately 25 years, acknowledged that board participation has waned in recently months, saying he was the only one to attend the last meeting.

But the Salvation Army’s role in the community was significant, Metcalfe said.

“I think it served a wonderful purpose for many, many years,” Metcalfe said. “It did more good in the community with very little acclaim.”

The closure comes just before the holiday giving season, and Metcalfe said he had hoped the state office would opt to hold on long enough to receive needed donations and perhaps make it longer.

“This is the time of year when people respond,” he said.

Metcalfe said the local chapter collected $25,000 last year from the bell ringers at local stores.

The Salvation Army had also been approved to receive funding from the United Way for the coming year.

But the social services, payroll and costs of running a Salvation Army in any community must be primarily supported by the agency’s local thrift shop, divisional public relations director Mark Jones said.

“The store is there for the purpose of raising money and generating funds to help people in the community,” he said. “A combination of sluggish sales and basically a store just not performing at a level to where it is creating revenue played a role in this.”

The Salvation Army’s Canal Street thrift store was barely bringing in enough money to cover the local payroll, Jones said.

But when the time came to make a tough decision, another factor weighed heavily, he said.

“There has been an extremely high number of break-ins at that building,” he said. “They’ve been unscrewing the metal wall and going in that way. People are breaking in left and right.”

Recently, donations, disaster response supplies and even the mail have been stolen, Jones said.

Natchez Police Chief Mike Mullins confirmed three break-ins in recent months, but said he didn’t have a total number of break-ins readily available. He said he would compile the statistics by Monday.

Mullins said he recommended to the Salvation Army that they purchase an alarm system.

Jones said the money generated at the thrift store wasn’t enough to justify the purchase of a security system.

“This was not an easy decision to make,” Jones said. “It’s just one of those situations where we held off as long as we could. It’s not a lack of concern for Natchez.

“We know (this criminal activity) is not a reflection on Natchez. This is simply an element within Natchez that every community experiences.”

Area residents who have already signed up for the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program will be serviced with food and gifts this Christmas, but after that the Salvation Army’s presence in Adams County will cease.

The agency will work to direct residents still in need to another local non-profit or to the closest Salvation Army branches, in McComb, Brookhaven or Vicksburg, Jones said.

In addition to operating a thrift store, the Natchez branch of the Salvation Army offered rental assistance, energy assistance, help getting gas hooked up and emergency response in the case of a fire for those in need.