Salvation Army Lacking Local Volunteers As Red Kettle Campaign Begins
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - You may have already seen or heard the bell ringers, but the Salvation Army's Red Kettle campaign officially kicks off today.
In Allegheny County, they are hoping to raise $665,000. Across Western Pennsylvania, the goal is $2,604,268.
But the sound of the Salvation Army's bells is missing from a number of locations this year. On the traditional opening day, there is a shortage of volunteers.
The customary chill of late November was missing as bell ringers manned their kettles on Friday. Salvation Army Major Paul Moore rings in the new season at South Hills Village. He hopes shoppers are aware of the organization's mission.
"We help a lot of people," he explained. "We feed them, we clothe them, we help with utilities, things like that. So we hope that people believe in us, and know what we do, and be generous."
Black Friday shoppers added to the familiar red kettle - perhaps with some of the money they saved on sales.
West Virginia donors were well represented.
"Every time we hit a store, we try to put some money in," said Mary Pockl of Wheeling. "It's just our way of contributing."
"We should spread the wealth," added Julia Cutright of Clarksburg. "I'm very fortunate and grateful for what I have, and I think we should give back."
Major Moore is ringing the bell because he enjoys it, and he enjoys taking in money for the Salvation Army. But on a less happy note, he's also out there because there just aren't enough volunteers this year. And fewer volunteers means less money for Salvation Army programs for the poor.
"We have some stores that are unmanned if we don't have the volunteers," Moore said. "I don't know if it's just early, or if they haven't called yet. I'm not sure. We had a number of schools that called last year, a number of groups, so I'm still waiting."
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