The Salvation Army wants you!
- posted: 04 Dec. 2007
- scrollspecial@byui.edu
With the Yuletide spirit thick in the air, there are many ways to impart the blessings of self-reliance through service. For those looking for unique opportunities to serve, there is an organization in dire need of volunteers: The Salvation Army Red Kettle program.
Every year the Christmas season brings apron-clad volunteers outside major stores, ringing bells and hoping to entice shoppers to part with their spare change for a greater cause.
This year, Rexburg is in need of bell-ringing volunteers. Chief Lynn Archibald of the Rexburg Police Department and supervisor of The Salvation Army Red Kettle program said it would be great if BYU-Idaho students helped.
“We could always use volunteers. That’s the one thing we don’t have enough of,” Archibald said.
The money earned always goes back to the community, and the red kettles usually bring in a couple hundred dollars a night. The goal is to have at least two stations running every night until Christmas, but without the volunteers, nothing can move forward.
“We need personable, friendly people. If you’ve got two or three [people], it works even better,” Archibald said.
It seems to be a common misconception among BYU-I students that volunteers are homeless or poor.
“I didn’t know that students could volunteer to be bell ringers,” said Emily Poteet, a senior studying English. “But it does make sense to want student volunteers in a university community. I would do it.”
All the earned money is counted at the bank the night it’s collected, and then reported back to the volunteer. Archibald said groups can split up between the two stations, Wal-Mart and K-Mart, and make it a friendly competition. Most important, said Archibald, is helping the people in the community who need the money raised.
“It would surprise the general public the number of people who have needs in [Rexburg], especially this time of year,” Archibald said.
To volunteer for the Red Kettle program, sign up for the day, hour and location at the Rexburg Police Department, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and ask for Sheila Rhodes, director of volunteers for the Salvation Army. 
