The Columbus and Starkville Salvation Army chapters are gearing up to begin their Red Kettle campaigns on Friday with the goal of collecting a combined $150,000.

The campaign is the organization’s largest fundraising effort held each year during the Christmas season. The money collected funds organization efforts throughout the year, including food pantries, rental and utility assistance and clothes closets.

Donna Otts, office manager for Columbus Salvation Army Service Center, told The Dispatch on Tuesday the chapter hopes to collect $100,000 this year, after only raising $80,000 last year. With a higher goal this year, the chapter aims to upgrade the organization’s food pantry, Otts said, including purchasing a new refrigerator.

“We’re rethinking our pantry, stocking more in the pantry, because of the (Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program) thing, it kind of opened up everybody’s eyes,” Otts said, referring to the pausing of SNAP benefits in October due to the federal government shutdown. “… We would like to be able to stock more food, and we would like to be able to buy a refrigerator to go in our pantry so that we could give our clients things like eggs and milk.”

Currently, Otts said the chapter has 18 paid bell ringers and eight local organizations – ranging from the Rotary Club of Columbus to the Columbus Kiwanis Club – signed on to volunteer members for certain days.

Bell ringers, either volunteers or paid, are stationed next to kettle bells throughout each day of the campaign. Individual shifts typically are about two hours, the Columbus branch’s website said.

The organization is still seeking an additional 30 to 40 volunteers to help fill in time slots at their planned eight locations in Columbus and West Point, Otts said.

“The more volunteers we get, the less bell ringers I have to send out, and the more money we (have) come in,” Otts said.

Otts said with the passing of Lt. Jason Houser, the branch’s corps officer, in August, efforts have been a bit more difficult this year, but the organization’s members still hope to reach their goal over the next month.

“That created one person short here, but the staff has come in, and we’re all doing extra this year,” Otts said.” We’ve all pulled together, and we’re going to get it done, and we’re doing it for him.”

‘Helping the community is what we’re here for’

In Starkville, Salvation Army Service Center Manager Tatiana Burgess said her team hopes to raise $50,000 despite only raising about $32,000 in 2024.

Burgess said part of the goal in raising more money is to turn less people away who are seeking assistance with rent and utilities.
“As high as these bills are … we have to turn so many people away, because (funds) just go so fast,” Burgess said. “People are always coming in, looking for help.”

Burgess said she started recruiting volunteers in October and already has more than 200 signed up, with hopes of adding 400 more to take on shifts during the month since Starkville doesn’t have any paid bell ringers.

“With the paid ringers, they repeat so they come back probably every day,” Burgess said. “… But with our volunteers … somebody may sign up for an hour, or a group may sign up for a day, which would be 10 slots for that whole day. And we’re just trying to fill in the gap.”

For more information on being a bell ringer, contact the Columbus branch at (662) 327-5137 or the Starkville branch at (662) 324-3304.

In addition to their food pantry and bill assistance programs, The Salvation Army also hosts the Angel Tree Program every year at Christmas, which allows the public to “adopt” children and purchase toys and other items from their wish lists so they can have gifts at Christmas.

The Angel Tree Program is underway both in Columbus and Starkville. Starkville received about 200 applications with 75 children adopted already, Burgess said.

Columbus received about 200 applications from children, and those not adopted by community members will receive gifts from donations already collected by the Salvation Army’s office, Otts said.

“We love this time of the year, even though it’s chaos, even though it’s hectic, it’s busy, because we do have so much going on. … We love serving the community,” Otts said. “It’s our passion … helping the community is what we’re here for.”