I know you have seen them around town... volunteers ringing bells next to the big red Salvation Army kettles. What you might not realize is that all those folks you see are volunteers, and it takes a lot of them each year to meet the Salvation Army's collection goals. In Amarillo, the Salvation Army has a goal this holiday season of $200,000 by Christmas Eve. That's not a lot of time to fill those kettles, and without some extra help, it won't happen.

Right now, the Salvation Army of Amarillo is asking for you help to ring bells at the area's kettles. Our news partners at ABC 7 KVII spoke with Major David Atkins, the Salvation Army's Amarillo Corps Officer on how we can all help this holiday season:

“With our Christmas kettles deployed later than usual because Thanksgiving was later this year, The Salvation Army is behind on our goal for Christmas by nearly $30,000, and it is cause for concern. We hope still to raise the $200,000 needed by Christmas Eve, but we are in need of a large surge in donations, and to do that we need more volunteer bell ringers who can give two or more hours of their time at locations around Amarillo and Canyon.”

The Major says it always works well if you donate time as a team. Not only is the hand off easier, but it makes collecting the donations more fun and easier too. If you or your group would like to sign up to ring this year, you can just go to RegisterToRing.com and schedule a time, date, and location.

Why is it so important to fill those giant red kettles each year? The Salvation Army receives the bulk of their annual budget at Christmas. Over 200 people are sheltered and fed nightly, and nearly 1,500 kids in need will wake up on Christmas morning with happy expectation of a new gift, thanks to supporters. More than 80 cents of each dollar are dedicated to meeting basic needs in Amarillo and Canyon.

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