Longboat bellringers ring in record contribution

Shoppers visiting the Publix Super Market at 525 Bay Isles Parkway during the holidays often found themselves met with the smiling faces and ringing bells of volunteers for The Salvation Army. On special occasions, they were joined by a lively band and a rosy-cheeked Santa Claus.

Those volunteers always aim to be Sarasota County's top-earning kettle. But they didn't realize until a $50,000 anonymous donation came through just how far they would outpace their previous record.

Capt. Jim Curry with The Salvation Army of Sarasota told the Kiwanis Club of Longboat Key that volunteers from the club and Christ Church of Longboat Key, who organize the bellringers at that location, made a tremendous difference.

"Your kettle alone reached $82,000," he said at the Feb. 5 meeting.

But that's not the end of it, Curry explained.

"You are so diligent about the match of $20 for $20 bills," he said. "You collected 521 bills. That's over $10,400 that was matched. So that raises your total to more than $92,000."

Photo by Dana Kampa

Chris Sachs, one of the main coordinators of the bell-ringing effort on Longboat Key, shared the news with fellow Kiwanis Club of Longboat Key members on Feb. 5.

Curry said he believes having some time to recover from pandemic- and hurricane-related expenses made a difference in people's ability to contribute.

"More people were out this year, and I see the community out more," he said. "The community has always supported us well, especially with our Angel Tree program. There was a great presence of people out, and they were happy and generous."

He noted that the kettles throughout Sarasota County all met their fundraising goals.

Curry thanked all the volunteers from the Kiwanis Club, the church and the wider community who contributed to this year's tremendous success.

"All around, it was a very good year," he said. "It really helps the people in our community who need it the most."