Winterhilfswerk

The ''Winterhilfswerk des Deutschen Volkes'' (), commonly known by its abbreviated form ''Winterhilfswerk'' (WHW), was an annual donation drive by the National Socialist People's Welfare () to help finance charitable work. Initially an emergency measure to support people during the Great Depression, it went on to become a major source of funding for the activities of the NSV and a major component of Germany's welfare state. Donations to the WHW, which were voluntary in name but ''de facto'' required of German citizens, supplanted tax-funded welfare institutions and freed up money for rearmament. Furthermore, it had the propagandistic role of publicly staging the solidarity of the ''Volksgemeinschaft''. Provided by Wikipedia