Salvation Army seeking Red Kettle Sponsors and Ringers

The fall season has only just begun but The Salvation Army is already gearing up for the upcoming holiday season, actively recruiting bell ringers and sponsors for their red kettle fundraising campaign.

“The Salvation Army Red Kettle program is our largest fundraiser of the year,” says Captain Jeff Marquis, corps officer for the The Salvation Army in Martin, St. Lucie and Okeechobee Counties. “Even though this program is only at Christmas time, we rely on these funds to sustain our mission of serving the community year-round.”

The Salvation Army provides basic needs such as food, shelter, clothing, and financial assistance to thousands of people in crisis along the Treasure Coast every year. Every donation given in a red kettle stays in the county in which it was raised to support those services but, in order to ensure a successful campaign, the more than 50 red kettles in the three counties must be manned.

“Anyone can volunteer to be a bell ringer,” says Kim Johnson, Director of Development for the local corps. “Individuals, families, social clubs, school clubs, church groups and musical groups. Some volunteers will really have fun with it and dress up or play an instrument or sing and dance along with Christmas music. Others just bring a chair and sit and ring the bell and say ‘thank you’ when a donation is given. We’re flexible. We just appreciate every volunteer.”

She explains that the bell ringing schedule is set up in two-hour timeslots. If a group books a full day of bell ringing, from 10 am to roughly 8 pm, The Salvation Army will recognize them on the kettle sign and on social media.

Businesses can also receive recognition as kettle sponsors. “Kettle sponsors are vitally important because we never have enough volunteers to cover all our kettles,” Johnson explains. “The sponsorships enable us to fill those empty timeslots by offering paid bell ringing positions to some of our clients in need.”

Sponsorships range from $125 per kettle per day to $1500 for the holiday season. In return, businesses will have their name or logo on the kettle sign at their chosen location and be recognized on social media.

To sponsor a kettle, visit salvationarmymartin.org or call 772-288-1471, ext. 202. To volunteer to ring bells for The Salvation Army, visit RegisterToRing.com or call 772-288-1471, ext. 216.