Salvation Army hopes for late-season push at kettles

The Salvation Army is experiencing a decrease in Red Kettle campaign donations in Manatee and Sarasota counties this season,  organizers say, but there's still time to make up the deficit.

“Fridays and Saturdays are a big day to catch up,” said Glenda Leonard, the Salvation Army's Director of Development, said.  "Weekends are when we get a lot of our donations.''

This weekend, Dec. 21-23, is the last of the 2018 campaign though most locations will operate into Christmas Eve.

The familiar Red Kettles, staffed by bell-ringing volunteers or in some cases paid staffers, dot the area, largely in front of Publix Supermarkets, Walmart stores and some Hobby Lobby locations. Campaign leaders in both counties attribute some of the shortfall to massive relief projects following Hurricane Michael in Florida's Panhandle. Also, kettles must be staffed, so without volunteers, which can be in short supply, some locations can't operate as often as they would with full staffing.

The Sarasota Salvation Army is $10,000 behind on year-over-year donations, said Major Charles Whiten, the Sarasota area commander. Manatee is about $23,000 behind year-over-year.

One bright spot, in Sarasota at least, is the effort of an anonymous donor, who is matching $20 bill donations. By Dec. 11, the Sarasota Salvation Army had recorded more than 800 donations of $20 bills.

“The donations we get during the Christmas season is something we use throughout the year,” Whiten said. “We use the money for buying meals, tending to forgotten seniors, keeping people housed and keeping the power on. We bought over 140,000 meals in Sarasota alone last year using the Red Kettle money.”

Kelly French, the director of communications and development for the Manatee County Salvation Army, said the reason the donations are down in Manatee is people aren’t volunteering consistently.

“We don’t have enough people to man the kettle bells during the week,” French said. “There are people on the weekends pretty consistently. Our best locations are the Publix on Manatee Avenue and 39th Street, Manatee Avenue and 75th Street, most of the Lakewood Ranch Publix stores and Hobby Lobby.”

While Manatee County uses paid employees and unpaid volunteers both to ring the bells throughout the county, Sarasota County is entirely volunteer-driven to ring the bells.

"We can always use volunteers," Whiten said. "There are a few groups really engaged in the bell-ringing volunteers, like the Kiwanis Club and a few local churches. We just need to make sure that if someone is out there ringing the bell. If someone isn't ringing the bell, there aren't going to be donations."