Salvation Army bell ringers bring holiday spirit, funds for Red Kettle Campaign

NORTHERN MICHIGAN — While snow falls to the ground and muffles the sounds of talking families and driving cars, the sound of bells may just continue to ring, especially in the month leading up to the holidays.

During the Christmas season, as people make their way into local grocery stores and toy shops, they just may hear the sounds of a ringing bell attached to the hand of someone in a red vest beside a red kettle, all a part of the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Campaign.

The Red Kettle Campaign is an annual fundraising initiative to bring in money to fund various programs the Salvation Army runs all year round. For bell ringer Donald Breckner, volunteering as a bell ringer is one way to give back after the Salvation Army helped him after he lost his New Orleans home in 2005 following Hurricane Katrina.

Originally from Michigan, Breckner moved to Northern Michigan after losing his home. During the holiday season, the Harbor Springs resident volunteers his time as a bell ringer both to give back to the foundation that helped him get back on his feet after his own displacement, as well as to give him something to do following his 2020 retirement.

During the 2023 season, he has worked as a bell ringer around five days a week.

More: Salvation Army asks for help to hit Red Kettle campaign goal

“It's a really wonderful feeling to interact with people. Like I said, I'm retired, so it's nice to bump into people I haven't seen in a while, or just have conversations with people,” Breckner said. “The thing I do enjoy is seeing the little kids come in. A lot of times it's their first time seeing a bell ringer or doing something charitable, and it really, really warms your heart when you see a little kid that gets excited about putting money in and sometimes you let them ring the bell.”

He said he started volunteering after seeing a ringer outside of a Walmart a few years ago and asked if they were in need of volunteers, and when he heard they were, he signed up for a few shifts.

“I think Northern Michigan people are super generous,” Breckner said. “I just I can't believe how much generosity I see.”

According to Amy Evans, director of Community Resource Engagement, the Red Kettle Campaign is one of the big ways of bringing in money each year, but the kettles see a big difference in donations based on if someone is actively manning the kettle.

“Even at the busiest, best location, there will be some pocket change and some lint at the end of the day,” Evans said. “They do not put money in unless there's someone there smiling at them. So that's why it's so important for people to volunteer to do that.”

Evans said the programs are important in helping people get access to food, shelter and paying their bills. Especially this year, she said, the Salvation Army has seen record numbers of people coming to the organization looking for help — even people who have never come to them before.

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To those who have spent their time working as a bell ringer, Evans said she would like to give them a “heartfelt thank you for caring about others in our community and sharing the Christmas spirit and setting a good example — being a good role model — for future community leaders.”

Especially this year, she is asking for support from the community to fill the red kettles because the organization is not on track to reach their annual goal.

The Red Kettle Campaign works to bring in money that keeps programs up and running, and in turn, helping lower-income families keep working, for example, by providing after-school care.

Robyn Rakoniewski, now in her second year of being a bell ringer, said she got involved with the program through the Kiwanis Club of Petoskey.

While she was stationed outside The Katydid in downtown Petoskey, she told the News-Review “people are very engaging and giving and it’s been fun to do it.”

She said giving back to the community is important to her, and signing up for a short shift with the Salvation Army is a good, easy way to give back.

People looking to donate to the Red Kettle Campaign can do so at sapetoskey.org.

— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter at @KarlyGrahamJRN.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Salvation Army bell ringers bring holiday spirit, support programs