Volunteer bell ringers are urgently needed in the Jacksonville area this holiday season. The Jacksonville Salvation Army has issued a plea for help during this year’s Red Kettle Campaign.
Major Chris Clarke with the Salvation Army of Jacksonville says even though the campaign has been going now for a number of weeks, they are in dire need of volunteers to help catch up.
“The campaign started on November 3rd and it’s running through Christmas Eve this year and we’re looking to raise one hundred and eighty-five thousand dollars this year. We’re off to a bit of a slow start though, and we’re not getting the coverage that we really need to be able to hit that target.
About forty percent of the bell-ringing days have passed by and we’re only at about seventeen percent of our goal so we are definitely behind where we need to be. But we are also just so thankful to everyone who already has rang the bells and who has already signed up to do that in the future. We just need a little more help.”
Clarke says currently they are only able to cover between two and four of the ten total kettle sites in the Jacksonville area. Clarke says about half of the kettle locations are indoors, so volunteers won’t necessarily have to brave the cold to help out.
Clarke says there are a couple of ways volunteers can sign up to ring in an effort to help people be able to sign up in whatever way is easiest for them.
“So people can go online anytime at registertoring.com, or they can just give the Salvation Army a call at 217-245-7124 and we can sign them up.”
Volunteers can ring for anywhere from one to two hours shifts, to all day if they so choose. They can also pick the day and time that works best for them.
Bell ringing locations include HyVee, Midlands, Walmart, JC Penny, both Walgreens, Buchheits, Bealls, & Ace Hardware.
Donations can also be made by mailing a check to The Salvation Army 331 W Douglas Ave Jacksonville, IL 62650, or online at: centralusa.salvationarmy.org/midland/jacksonville