Columbus Salvation Army leaders love that there is a ring of familiarity to its annual Red Kettle Campaign that supports outreaches ranging from its food pantry to summer camps.
And they also love the unpredictability of many of their kettle volunteers who will be ringing in the season a bit earlier than normal this year — beginning Thursday in anticipation of greater need linked to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Columbus resident Sandy Dooley is among those volunteers. She rang last Christmas season wearing a homemade snowman suit. But the outgoing Dooley is hardly the Frosty type.
“The suit was warm,” said Dooley, who just signed up to ring weekly in two-hour slots this holiday season.
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So was the community in its giving last year. The drive raised $120,000 combined with mail and online giving, according to Capt. Amy Tompkins, the head of the local office at 2525 Illinois Ave. This year’s goal is $135,000 including the kettle campaign ending Dec. 24 and the mail-in and online push running through Jan. 31.
“If we can reach that, that would be amazing,” Tompkins said.
To reach those numbers, Tompkins said signing up enough volunteer ringers is a key. For the last few years, a number of kettle locations have been unattended because of a shortage of ringers, which contributes to a shortage of collections. Dooley understands.
“I volunteer to ring because, for one thing, it’s a good cause,” Dooley said. “And that makes my heart happy. It’s a real blessing to me. You get to see all the little kids go by. And some people will start singing.
“This year, we definitely need some fun and some happiness. This year, we need to ring as many bells as possible. I know that Salvation Army and people definitely need the help.”
The nonprofit church and social service outreach uses the money for its next calendar year’s budget — except for salaries, which are covered by the organization’s divisional office. The budget covers helping residents with utilities, funding its Angel Tree program for needy families and other outreaches. About 85 cents of every donated dollar goes directly to helping others, according to the organization’s promotional material.
Helping the cause this year will be a new element: a posted QR code at each kettle that passersby can scan and then make an online donation on the spot. Originally, Tompkins hoped to have debit card readers at each kettle, but will not be the case.
“So many people no longer carry cash,” Tompkins said.
Last year’s total landed at $23,000 above 2018’s collection of $97,000.
“It does give me hope, even though I’m a little nervous, because I already know there are so many people hurting this year,” Tompkins said.
If the campaign falls short of the goal, programs get cut. In 2018, youth programs were trimmed, and the pantry was even closed for a time, which Tompkins especially hated to see. She mentioned that most of the public rarely makes a connection between empty kettles and the agency’s food pantry.
“When they see the kettles, I think most people simply think about our Angel Tree (for gifts),” she said.
Dooley figures that if people fully realized the Salvation Army’s need, plus the need of the community, they would truly let their volunteerism ring out unabashedly in brief time slots.
“I mean, everybody has maybe two hours, right?” she asked.
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The Columbus Salvation Army has faced a severe shortage of volunteer bell ringers for more than a decade for its annual Red Kettle Campaign that supports everything from its food pantry to youth and after-school programs and summer camp.
To volunteer: registertoring.com
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