The Red Jingle!

I love the work the salvation army does! I always get an angel from a tree and put money in the kettle! My daughter is still a baby, but I am excited to share the spirit of giving with her as she gets older.

I love seeing them. I love that that usually means Christmas is around the corner. The people around here are usually REALLY nice. Some can be a bit creepy looking though, but then they end up being the friendliest. LOL!
I most certainly will install the we give to others mind set in my son. My mom is one of the most selfish people I know. She will bake or cook for people, but only to hear how amazing her food was. Whenever she is asked for money, she scoffs, and gets after me when I give my change to charities. So growing up with that was AWFUL.

Yes, I put dollars in the red pot every year. Yes I explain generosity and charity to my kids, and model it. (no matter HOW bad you think YOU'VE got it, someone else's got it worse)

And I think it's very honorable of you to work so diligently for no monetary gain.

Nice post, good luck with your new venture, and thank you for your selfless service. We are all better for it.

:)

Here is my thing about the dingalings. Guilt!!!! Around the holidays I can go in and out of the grocery store ten times a day because I keep forgetting things. I would be broke if I gave a dollar every time. So I feel guilty after the third or fourth time going in the store. :(

It is important and I do give a lot during the holiday.

I still feel guilty......

I donate and I have my kids each donate all season long.

They dont ''GET'' it yet.

They will eventually. And I can only hope that it will help seed generosity within them.

I actually LOVE the bell. It is one of those sounds of the season.

So many places no longer allow them to ring in their doors ways. Which I think is silly! It is a good cause and helps alot of people in need.

Congratulations on the offer!! What a neat organization to work for!!

We give to the jinglers. My kids love it too. I try to have plenty of change in my purse around the holidays to give. My kids even go looking around the house for loose change when they know we are shopping and might see the jinglers.

We especially like when they have little holiday candies to give out when you put money in the kettle. I know you shouldn't expect anything when giving but it made for really sweet moments between my kids and the jinglers...and it struck up conversation. I like it when the jingler says "Thank you"...or "God Bless". It then turns into such a teaching moment for my kids.

No my first thought is not to call the Salvation Army if my family were financially in need. We would contact family first for help then our church and friends and then Salvation Army probably last. We just start with those that we feel closest ties to.

Good luck and best wishes for another 125 years...wow...I didn't know they have been around that long!!

Just remember the law of averages...

Okay, I've forgotten the exact numbers (someone help me out here!), but it's something like if you reach out to 100 people, 60% say no, 30% say maybe (meaning if they're going IN a store, you can get them when they come back out), and 10% say hands down yes.

You have to fail in order to get those 'yes's'!!!

If YOU look like you're enjoying yourself (and not freezing and miserable), people are more prone to react positively to a positive person.

I learned all this when I was working for the DARE program... it definitely wasn't for me, but it's basically doing the same as what you're doing. I admire your rhino skin!!

It doesn't annoy me... sometime's I smile and keep walking, sometime's I'll give the kids some change to donate. We're big on helping others. Even when WE probably should have been the ones on the Angel Tree around the holidays, we were helping other kids. My children LOVE helping others!

Our local salvation army, does back packs for kids before school, christmas gifts, a weekly food bank, after school tutoring that THEY provide transportation for, a youth group that they provide meals and transportation for, financial help when needed, help with school uniforms and Free sleep away summer camp. They are actually a church, which I didn't know until a year or so ago. I love our local Salvation Army and the people associated with them.

I love the Salvation Army. That is who we primarily give to, and our church. I have always loved to see them during the holidays, and sometimes I hate it when I don't have change in my purse and we can only give a quarter or whatever. Everyone is always so friendly, and last year at our Walmart, there was this lady standing there ringing her bell, and she was singing Christmas carols at the top of her lungs!! We loved it!! She was still doing it when we left the store too. And yes, we have explained to the kids why they are there and why they are raising money.

Yes it does annoy me to hear the jingle bells,yes I do put money in there but not at everyone I can shop around town to 3 different places & put money in but at the 4th stop no or the day before not the day after,yes I explain to my kids what the cause is for they do have a change purse that I will allow them to take money out of their piggies to drop into the kettles or out of my pocket book,yes I will call them if I was desperate to heat my home.If I make it to the mall I will select an angel from the tree & by gifts for that angel as my donation & appreciation & a warm feeling that I put a smile on a childs face Christmas morning.Good for you that your doing this this year.Keep that smile on when it freezing cold

I think it's great and I am happy to see them with the red kettle. I donate thruoughout the Christmas season :)

I put whatever I have/whatever I can into ever kettle. Even if it is just 10cents. Every penny helps. I just wish they had more that had the credit card swipes on them. I often dont have cash, and if I dont put anything in I do feel guilty.

No, the Salvation Army would not be my first thought if I were in financial crisis. It is simply not well marketed at least around here and I guess I just would not think of it.
There is a growing number of panhandlers who are well dressed and do not look homeless in my area and I am left wondering: Do they not qualify for help? Do they not know where to get help? Or are they asking for money because they feel they are entitled to continue the lifestyle they have become accustomed to?
Because of this, and because of the fact that we are asked for donations more frequently than we can help now a days, we have decided to do planned giving. We want to know how the charities we give money to will actively reach out to those in need and what criteria it uses in who it will help.

I always thought of the SA like Goodwill where you can buy used items and donate things too. I didn't think they were like the Red Cross where you can actually go for financial help if needed.

If MY spouse had an accident and was unable to work, we have AFLAC which pays us CASH for those exact situations, to help financially during an accident, injury, cancer or major sickness. We also have an emergency fund.

I don't know too many people that would seek out help at the SA. I don't even know much about them, obviously, and don't recall any kind of commercial or advertising for them.

Good luck in your new endevors!

I pay tithing to support local food storehouses and the like and also do volunteer work. So often, no we do not put money in the kettle, but if I have loose change we will. But we do teach our kids about donating and helping others in many ways.

And I agree with the others, the Salvation Army wouldn't be the first place I would turn to in a time of crisis, though I'm sure they do great community outreach in the few lower income areas I've seen them in. It is a religion though, is it not?

I give my kids moeny to put in the kettles. We put in pocket change every time we go to the store. At Christmas I keep extra just for this purpose. Other times I clean out my purse about once a week.

I do not think they need to be out there before Thanksgiving, that what gets me.

If my spouse were suddenly out of work I would not think of the Salvation Army or Red Cross I would get a job myself.

We normally give to the jinglers. However, I haven't had much use for the salvation aemy since they told my sister to get an abortion when she got pregnant at 18.

I agree with the card readers - a lot of people use debit cards and therefore don't carry cash or change to be able to donate. A friend of mine who majored in Emergency Management opened my eyes to the SA. I try to give every chance I get. Thank you for volunteering and thanks to SA for helping so many people!

I know that the vast majority of the money donated to the SA goes directly to its outreaches so that alone is my reason for always supporting the Red Kettle. The same cannot be said for many, many other "charities".

I didn't know the cause behind it. Now I do. I usually donate at least once but just a couple dollars. I never have cash on me. I just use my debit card all the time.