Thanksgiving kicks off the annual bell ringing next to all those red Salvation Army donation kettles.  

This year's message. They need you more than ever.

The Salvation Army is going to be serving the needs this year of close to 24 million people here in the United States. In case you didn’t know it, the donations that you give in your area, stay in your area, to help the local people that really need help.

Kenneth Hodder, the National Commander of the Salvation Army, a dynamic guy with a Harvard education and a great personality, stopped by my radio show to bring us all up to speed on his organization, which is the largest social services organization in the United States. Roughly 5,000 Salvation Army officers, about 60,000 employees, and about 3 million volunteers are continuously working to help meet the needs of those in difficult situations. 

“The economic impact of the pandemic continues to be a key issue to which the Salvation Army is addressing itself”, say Kenneth. “Right now, about 92 million Americans have had difficulty paying their most basic household expenses in the past week. Homelessness has grown by double digits. The coming freezing weather of winter threatens all sorts of people on the street, and there are those that might lose their homes as a result of evictions or loss of utilities. So there are a lot of reasons to become involved in meeting the needs of your neighbors. Money put in the kettle is going to stay in that community. People should know that they are helping the people in need, in their area, whenever they give to the Salvation Army.”

If you or someone you know needs help and you see someone who's in a Salvation Army uniform, just tell them what you need! They’ll call the local Salvation Army who will do whatever they can to assist you. They’re always ready to help.

“We're seeing an increasing number of volunteers, says Commander Kenneth Hodder, “and I’m inviting all your listeners to volunteer this year for a kettle. Donating a couple of hours of your time, can buy several nights of shelter for someone. It can provide several dozen meals for a family. You can make a huge difference having a lot of fun standing out on the street corner ringing a bell, bring your spouse, bring your pet, bring your children, join your corporate group. It's a great thing to do in the holiday season. It will make you feel good, and you'll make a real difference.”

You can check out the volunteering options at SalvationArmyUSA.org, which are generally done in about two-hour segments.

82 cents of every dollar donated goes directly toward funding Salvation Army initiatives and it stays within the community in which it was given.

My personal suggestion to Kenneth, was that he hurry up and figure out how someone could just walk up to those red kettles and swipe a credit card across, because as we all know, people hardly carry cash anymore. He said he would get right ‘on it’!

Meanwhile you can donate in several ways online as well.

If you want more information, again, it's SalvationArmyUSA.org