With the summer sun beating down, Christmas may seem like a long way off. But for the Salvation Army, it’s never too soon to start preparing.
In just a few months, the organization’s iconic Red Kettles and bell ringers will appear throughout Cambridge, MD, raising vital funds for programs and services essential to help those in need 365 days a year.
The bell-ringing season officially starts in November and runs through Christmas Eve at various locations, Monday - Saturday.
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CAMBRIDGE - With the summer sun beating down, Christmas may seem like a long way off. But for the Salvation Army, it’s never too soon to start preparing.
In just a few months, the organization’s iconic Red Kettles and bell ringers will appear throughout Cambridge raising vital funds for programs and services essential to help those in need 365 days a year.
The bell-ringing season officially starts in November and runs through Christmas Eve at various locations, Monday - Saturday.
According to Major David Lorenzo, executive director of the Salvation Army’s Mid-Shore headquarters in Cambridge, having enough volunteer bell ringers ready to serve means the difference between an empty kettle and one that raises about $30 per hour, enough to provide a family with two bags of groceries or shelter an individual for a night.
"For more than one hundred years, The Salvation Army's Red Kettle Campaign has funded a wide variety of social service programs for individuals and families," Lorenzo said. "To collect the funds needed, we need volunteers to serve as bell ringers throughout the community this holiday season."
To perform this vital service, The Cambridge Corp seeks people who are friendly and personable to create an emotional one on one connection to community members they hope to inspire to contribute.
While individuals are welcome to participate, often larger groups have volunteered in tandem.
“We’ve had families, faith-based groups, coworkers, student groups, and service clubs volunteer to ring bells,” Lorenzo said.
“I remember one year, a large family split up between several kettle locations and had a friendly competition on filling their kettles."
The money raised by the Red Kettle bell ringers helps those in need within the community served by the Cambridge Mid-Shore headquarters. It also helps to keep the organization’s lights on and keep providing food, shelter, outreach assistance, and other services for an increasing number of people struggling to make ends meet to provide daily subsistence.
For information about volunteering as a Red Kettle Bell Ringer, call 410-228-2442.
