Salvation Army seeks bell ringers to help reach Red Kettle Campaign goal

By Chris Fortune

Red Kettle campaigns are well underway nationally, but fewer bells are ringing at St. Joseph storefronts this year.

The local Salvation Army at 602 Messanie St. has four paid bell ringers instead of the usual six or seven, but support from volunteers is helping set a Red Kettle goal of $100,000.

Bell ringer Joyce Edelstein has done the job for over 30 years and continues to do so because of the kindness she received from the Salvation Army.

“Well, I come every year to pay it back because when my son was small, the Salvation Army helped us,” she said.

Major Ronald Key said several people picked up applications for a bell ringer position this year, but many were never returned.

“It usually is not this slow at this time of year, but it is really slow right now,” he said. “So we’re just doing the best we can and raising as much money as we can with the few people that we have.”

Key said he is grateful for all the volunteers who help raise money, but stories like Joyce’s make an impression on donors.

“It makes it a lot more interesting and more impactful on what the money is going for and what that person is doing to help other people,” he said. “Basically, paying it forward.”

For Edelstein, the best part of the job is meeting new people, and she finds that most of the people she talks to are kind and courteous. Some of the interactions even lead to future bell ringer opportunities.

“There’s been people that I’ve talked to that have benefited from the Salvation Army and further,” Edelstein said. “Some of them have come back to bell ring, too.”

The St. Joseph Salvation Army has raised over $5,000 in the Red Kettle Campaign after running for nearly two weeks. The fundraiser ends on Dec. 24, and all the proceeds help people in the St. Joseph community.

“We use it several different ways,” Key said. “It could be at our shelter, it could be for food, clothing, housing, just about anything somebody might need.”