PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The holidays are here and the Salvation Army is once again looking for volunteers for its red kettle bell ringer campaign.
When you see a friendly face outside of an establishment in Salvation Army gear ringing a bell next to a red kettle, you know the festive season is fully underway. This method of soliciting for donations has been around for over 130 years, and for many, it evokes a sense of nostalgia.
“They're getting out of their car, and they hear the bell, and they'll come up and they'll say, you know, when I was a little kid, my mom gave me money to put in the kettle,” said Capt. Benjamin Lyle, coordinator for the Salvation Army of Greater Philadelphia, “so every time I see a kettle, I'm sure to put some money in the kettle.”
Lyle says it all started in the late 1800s in San Francisco, when an officer placed a cast iron kettle on the street to collect money to feed hot meals to those in need. The campaigns have proven successful.
“Last year in the Greater Philadelphia area, we raised over $143,000,” he said. “That goes a long way to support and provide for the needs of the community and for the programs that we provide.”
He adds that volunteering for this donation collection can be rewarding and people of all backgrounds can sign up, including area businesses.
“Some corporations like to offer their employees the opportunity to spend a day or a few hours volunteering with the Salvation Army, and we work with groups in that way,” Lyle said.
With costs increasing, the organization looks to double last year’s numbers. They’ve also modernized the donation method a bit with a digital donation option called “tip tap.”
“If you see a kettle you'll see a large white sign attached to the red kettle, and it has three little boxes attached to it,” Lyle explained, “people are able to utilize their credit card, their debit card, or their phone to make a donation at the red kettle in that way.”