By Christine Price
Columnist
Amidst all the stress, anxiety, craziness and bad news, my goal is to spotlight and share the good news in our community.
Yesterday, as I stood beside the familiar red kettle at Great Lakes Mall, the steady ring of the Salvation Army bell became more than a call for donations: it became a soundtrack of kindness.
I watched people pause in the middle of their busy day to slip coins and bills into the kettle, each small gift adding up to something powerful.
But the most heartwarming moments were the little ones, guided by parents who knelt beside them, gently teaching the joy of helping others.
In those simple exchanges, generosity felt alive and incredibly hopeful.
The story behind the Red Kettle
The tradition of the Red Kettle goes back more than a century. In 1891, Salvation Army Capt. Joseph McFee was heartbroken to see so many people in San Francisco going hungry.
He resolved to provide a free Christmas dinner for 1,000 of the city’s poorest residents, but he had no money to fund it.
For nights, he worried and prayed about where the funds would come from. Then he remembered his sailor days in Liverpool, England.
At Stage Landing, where ships came in, there stood an iron kettle called Simpson’s Pot. Passersby tossed in coins to help the poor.
Inspired, McFee placed a similar kettle at the Oakland Ferry Landing in San Francisco with a sign reading, “Keep the Pot Boiling.”
Before long, he had enough money to serve Christmas dinner and the red kettle tradition was born.
Today, the Salvation Army continues that mission: caring for the poor, restoring broken families, feeding the hungry, educating youth, responding to emergencies and helping people overcome barriers to achieve their goals.
This belief in the possibility of transformed lives remains at the heart of everything they do.
Yesterday’s bell ringing shift was wonderful.
Hannah, Pam and I, members of the newly-formed Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary, rang the bell, sang Christmas carols, danced and laughed the entire time.
Stories from the Red Kettle
One lovely woman approached the kettle, reached into her purse, placed a donation into the kettle and then shared her story.
“I have been in recovery and sober for 13 months,” she told us. “I am so appreciative that you’re out here ringing the bell. The Salvation Army has helped me so much. Please keep up the good work.”
Another woman offered a story from decades earlier. In the 1960s, the Salvation Army Evangeline Residence in Cleveland served as a safe and affordable boarding home for women, especially those with few resources who were returning to school. It was part of a network of similar residences across the country.
“They had a bus in the morning that took girls from the residence to classes at Mount Sinai, down to Cleveland Clinic and over to the music school,” she told me. “It followed the same route in the evenings to bring us home. I studied X-ray technology at Cleveland Clinic.”
She smiled as she remembered the small joys of those days.
“Several girls were learning to play the harp and the residence had a couple of rooms where they could practice,” she said. “One memory I’ll never forget was when they brought in some boys from the Nike site and we all had a party on the roof. It was terrific!”
If you’d like to spend a couple of hours ringing the bell this Christmas season, you can sign up at www.RegisterToRing.com. I promise you’ll have a wonderful time, meet kind people and help the Salvation Army continue the work that helps so many.
May the sound of the bell remind us all that even the smallest act of generosity can warm a heart – and sometimes, even change a life!
When you see good news, and you will, please let me know. I would love to share it. Please include your name, phone number, and city you live in and email.
