With a warm, friendly smile, bell ringing volunteers are sharing some yuletide joy with holiday shoppers this Christmas season.
Area residents are welcome to donate to the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Campaign and can sign up until Saturday, Dec. 24 to ring the bells at the entrances of Walmart and Woods Supermarket.
The Salvation Army has teamed up with Community Outreach Ministries, designating 85% of the campaign’s proceeds to benefit Polk County families. Funds will assist with fuel, rent, utility, and other emergency costs.
Micah Titterington, executive director of COM, says the 2022 fundraising goal is set at $22,000. Last year’s goal of $28,000 wasn’t quite reached.
“We fell short of last year's goal, which was a common trend across Salvation Army locations around the country for 2021,” Titterington says. “Likely reasons were decreased in-person shopping and a harder time recruiting volunteers with the pandemic still in full swing.”
In order to reach this year’s goal, Titterington encourages people in the community to volunteer for a bell ringing time slot. Many slots are still available, and individuals or groups in Polk County can sign up online at www.bolivarcom.org/bellringing.
Donations to the Red Kettle Campaign can also be made online bolivarcom.org/bellringing.
Shoppers can also access the donation site by scanning the QR code that can be found on most Salvation Army kettles.
