It’s that time of year again, as the Salvation Army is looking for bell ringers to collect money for Grayson County families in need.
Program Coordinator Tracy Dennison said it only takes 12 people working two-hour shifts to keep the bells ringing from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. On a Saturday, up to $1,500 can be raised for Grayson County residents.
Dennison encourages school groups, church groups and businesses to consider donating time for this worthwhile cause.
“Locally, businesses and organizations, such as Head Start, churches, school groups and some of factories allow their staff to ring on company time and it is blocks of time like this that the money really adds up,” Dennison said.
She added that she encourages parents to sign up their kids, “so they learn the importance of volunteering and giving back to their community. I promise you will walk away feeling good about what you did and who you helped.”
The money raised by Salvation Army bell ringers stays in the community, Dennison said, and is used throughout the year to help families after a fire or other emergency, purchasing prescriptions, repairing cars so a person can continue to work, and many other emergency needs.
“Having worked for government funded programs my entire career, I was bound by income guidelines and restrictions, however, with programs such as Salvation Army and the Ministerial Association, we are able to set the guidelines which allows us to help those who are helping themselves,” Dennison stated.
Of course, your donation at one of the kettles will help the local Salvation Army unit provide services in the upcoming year, but the greatest help this time of year is to volunteer to be a bell ringer.
“I know if people see the kettle’s setting there, they will drop their change in, but when they see a ‘real person’ ringing the bell, our donations increase.”
Dennison jokingly added, “When they see a kid standing there; well that makes all the difference.”
If you are interested in being part of this year’s Red Kettle Campaign, reach out to Dennison to schedule a time to ring. She can be reached at 270-589-1991 or by email at tracy.dennison.ky@gmail.com, or on Facebook.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
