SIUSLAW NEWS | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2018 | 7A
KETTLE from page 1A
“We also have a floater,” said
Red Kettle coordinator Sandy
Kuhlman, who was working the
other end of Fred Meyer as Reed
was just finishing up her shift.
If there’s something going on
downtown or at the Florence
Events Center, then that kettle
gets “floated” to the next loca-
tion.
Kuhlman talked about what it
takes to be a good ringer.
“Energy,” she said. “Someone
who does have a smile and a
positive disposition. Scrooge
doesn’t ring bells.”
Kuhlman was ringing her bell
on the north end of Fred Mey-
er. She ran down the ins and
outs of getting people to come
into the ringing fold, which is
open to anyone who can pro-
vide the time. Finding ringers is
one of Kuhlman’s primary jobs
as coordinator. She works on
the campaign with local resi-
dent and area coordinator Sam
Spayd, who helps juggle more
than 100 volunteers over the
month-long period.
For the local campaign, one of
the biggest problems is getting
out the word that 90 percent
of the funds raised stay within
the community, considering
that Salvation Army is a global
organization. In fact, the local
aspect is what got Kuhlman into
ringing.
“It gave me a lot of confi-
dence,” she said.
The funds go to a whole host
of local projects, including the
Western Lane County Endow-
ment, Florence Food Share,
emergency clothing for Ma-
pleton and Siuslaw elementary
schools, tennis shoes for the
Boys and Girls Club of Western
Lane County cheer team and
snacks for after-school sports
programs at Mapleton.
“Pastor Dale over at Cross
Road Assembly of God has
had a voucher program for lo-
cal families, helping them out
when they come short,” Kuhl-
man added. “‘Car broke down,
do I fix the car of pay my utility
bill?’ And so he has a voucher
program, and that’s where the
money is going to. He gets a lit-
tle household budget training in
there, which is great, teaching
people. And it’s staying here in
the community. I think that’s a
huge piece.”
Once people know that the
money stays local, generally
they’re amenable to signing up
to volunteer, even for just a two-
hour stint. That is, if they can
find the time, a tough feat con-
sidering the amount of volun-
teer hours that get logged in the
community. Kuhlman listed off
half a dozen organizations she
has been (or still is) involved
with.
“I’ve started to do what I
call ‘situational volunteering.’
Something like this where, for
a month or five weeks, it’s a
little bit crazed, but it’s not an
all-year commitment,” she said.
“It’s hands on. One and done, a
month of craziness and it’s all
over.”
One of the biggest selling
points is that a ringer shift only
lasts two hours.
“That will get people that you
can’t otherwise get,” Kuhlman
said.
Then there’s convincing peo-
ple to actually sign up. Kuhlman
usually sticks to asking friends,
one of whom came up to com-
pliment her and comment on
her hat.
“I have to buy a hat before I
do this,” her friend said. “Do I
need a sweater?”
“No, and you can find hats at
the dollar store,” Kuhlman reas-
sured her friend. “They have a
good selection.”
“Well, I’ll connect with you,”
the friend said as she walked
away.
Kuhlman smiled.
“That’s a friend I’m working
on,” she said. “She’s there. She
has to look at her schedule.
She’s talking about getting a hat.
That’s a step.”
Once people do sign up, there
are a few tips to make the time
work, starting with the actual
bell ringing.
KEEP CHRIST IN
CHRISTMAS
Sponsored by
St. Mary Our Lady of the Dunes
Knights of Columbus
Florence, Oregon
Local Salvation Army Red
Kettle volunteers such as
Sandy Kuhlman (right) are
taking post outside of area
businesses, greeting shop-
pers as they walk through
the doors.
“You have to switch hands,”
Kuhlman said. “I’m not typical-
ly ambidextrous, but you can do
it.”
While it’s possible to get wild
with the bell ringing, holding it
above the head as some colonial
town crier, it would get tiring
after a while. Plus, it doesn’t re-
ally work very well. Kuhlman
held the bell over her head, and
the bell rang with a thud.
“You see, you need to be more
relaxed,” she said. “But the bell
is just about making the noise.”
Instead, it’s best to keep your
arms down, putting minimal
force into ringing.
The real trick is how you in-
teract with people.
“Stay off your phone,” she
said. “And don’t hang out
talking to people. It makes it too
easy for people to pass you. Just
don’t stand here looking like
you’re miserable.”
Kuhlman stressed that saying
a greeting when people walked
in was vital.
“If you’re just standing here,
it’s really easy for people to just
walk by. But if they’re coming
in, and they’re not making eye
contact with you, they’re more
likely to look up when you say
‘Merry Christmas.’ They look
up, you make eye contact, smile
and ring the bell. That’s the key.
When you walk by, it’s really
hard to ignore somebody when
then say Merry Christmas,
they’re smiling and they’re in
good cheer. You might not be
able to put money in the kettle,
but you’re going to say, ‘Merry
Christmas.’”
Kuhlman also stressed the
importance of using the words
“Merry Christmas.”
“You should say Merry Christ-
mas, not Happy Holidays,” she
said. “You’re more likely to of-
fend people who think it should
be Merry Christmas over Hap-
py Holidays then you are to say
Merry Christmas to people who
think the other. In my personal
life, I would tend more to say
Happy Holidays, but I’m not
offended by Merry Christmas.
There are people who, if you
say ‘Happy Holidays’ will get of-
fended. And so, we’re trying to
be as inoffensive as possible.”
The case was brought home
after she said “Merry Christ-
mas” to a man getting a shop-
ping cart.
“And happy Hanukkah, by
the way,” the man said without
a hint of bad blood. Hanukkah
was about to begin the next day.
“Absolutely!” Kuhlman re-
plied, beaming.
“And thank you for your vol-
unteerism!” the man said before
dropping money into the kettle.
“You gotta be socially sensi-
tive,” Kuhlman said as the man
walked away. “Life is full of
landmines, and I try not to get
blown up.”
A happy greeting and being
present with people are the
most important parts of being
a ringer, particularly for those
who actively try to ignore the
bell ringers. One woman bar-
reled through the front en-
trance, eyes staring straight
down as Kuhlman cheerily said,
“Merry Christmas.” The woman
never looked up.
“They have to be very studi-
ous in not acknowledging you,”
Kuhlman said. “They really
work hard at it.”
Reed encountered the same
type of people from time to
time, and counted herself in
that group in days past.
“I think I’ve done that be-
fore,” she said, laughing. “It’s
not uncommon. I think it’s nor-
mal, especially if you don’t have
any extra cash to give. What
I notice too is that people will
sometimes just say thank you.
They might not have any mon-
ey to give, but they’re thanking
you for being here, which is
cool too.”
Having cash on hand can be
difficult in a card-fueled econ-
omy. When asked if she carries
cash around, Reed pulled out
her cell phone: Her debit card
was attached.
“I don’t even carry my purse
into the store,” she said.
But Reed said that she’s now
dipping into her coin jar to
make sure that she has money
to give.
Kuhlman keeps cash on hand
now, particularly after she be-
gan as a ringer the year prior.
“Last season, I realized I
couldn’t pass by because I knew
what it was like to stand there
and ring the bell and have peo-
ple walk by and not do any-
thing,” she said. “I would liter-
ally carry a bunch of $1 bills in
my person specifically to give.
Instead of putting all my mon-
ey in at one time, I do a dollar.
It adds up over the course of a
month. But once you’ve done it,
you’re a little more empathetic
for the people standing there.”
At that point, a man juggling
a cup of coffee and his wallet
handed Kuhlman $1 for the
kettle.
“Oh, thank you!” she said
while laughing. “I thought you
were giving me your coffee as
well.”
The “cash handoff ” is rare,
according to Kuhlman.
“Most people put it in the
bucket. It’s part of the fun. And
it’s interesting, the people who
roll up their money is when it’s
the biggest bills. A lot of people
want to give discreetly. Some
people want to flash their giv-
ing. Other people will come up
and reach in and put it in, and
instantly start apologizing: It’s
not more,” she said. “And I think
one of the secrets is to thank
people, regardless of what it is.
It makes a difference, no matter
what they’re giving you. If they
give a quarter, it makes a differ-
ence. You want to encourage it
that way, but make it fun.”
As to what type of people
gives, it’s anyone’s guess.
“I don’t have a sense of that,”
she said. “A lot of times, you get
surprised. ... You can’t judge. At
least I haven’t figured that out.
People will surprise you.”
It’s that sense of giving more
than you can is what really
struck Bettina Hannigan, who
worked the north side Fred
Meyer shift just before Kuhl-
man.
“Sometimes the people that
you least expect to give are the
ones that give the most,” Han-
nigan said. “So, I’m sitting here,
ringing the bell, and this gen-
tleman comes out and puts a
$5 bill. Usually it’s $1 or some
change. He goes out front, then
this old truck rolls up, and he
puts his groceries in. It didn’t
look like he had any money to
spare. I was like, ‘Wow.’ It’s lit-
tle things like that that give you
a reality check, you know? You
never know. I think sometimes
people who are receivers are the
best givers, because they under-
stand how important it is.”
Hannigan is a ringer because
it helps the community and is a
safe bet.
“It is one of the safest, most
conservatively managed places
to give without the overhead,”
she said.
But she also just has great re-
spect for the organization itself.
“A big part of it for me is the
religious portion of it,” she said.
“They don’t bring just food,
they bring people hope.”
Hannigan said she knows
someone who was with the or-
ganization for 80 years.
“He was actually a composer
and in the ministry his whole
life. When he was dying, the Sal-
vation Army recorded one of his
songs called ‘The Song of Songs’
on their Christmas album. And
he waited until it came in the
mail. He was holding on until
that CD came. And he played
it over and over again, and then
died the next day. So, it’s those
sort of sentimental connections.
You never know what’s going to
change someone’s life.”
For Hannigan, the simple act
of greeting someone in a cheery
manner is the best way to
change someone’s life, including
hers.
“I’m not a good hands-on
person,” she said. “I don’t want
to feed people, I don’t want to
cook, I don’t want to vacuum
the floor. But if I can do this,
and it’s something I enjoy, and
it helps make a difference, then
the people who like the hands-
on stuff can do the hands-on
stuff.”
Hannigan forgoes the “Merry
Christmas,” instead opting for
a cheerful “Good morning” to
everyone.
“Good morning!” she said as
a woman rushed to the kettle.
“I found a penny in the park-
ing lot, and I think it belongs
here,” she said, putting the pen-
ny in the kettle.
“Thank you!” Hannigan said
as they all laughed.
“This satisfies my social need
for extroversion, to see every-
body and be out here,” Han-
nigan said later on. “I enjoy
the different people making
a difference. For me, you give
people a gift by smiling and
saying hello to them. There’s
no demand. You have different
shapes and sizes. There was a
homeless man getting his food
and living his life, and God, I go
home and I’ve got everything I
need. … Doing this, ringing the
bell, you just get to be out. And
I love to touch people’s lives.
Sometimes a smile makes all
the difference. Good morning
ladies!”
A woman and her young
niece walked up to Hannigan.
“You want to ring the bell,”
the woman said.
Hannigan handed her bell
to the girl, who took hold and
rang it. And rang it. And then
rang it some more.
Children asking to ring the
bell is one of the best parts of
the job.
“There was one little family
that came through,” Hannigan
said. “It was so cute, they had a
little toddler, and she wouldn’t
give the bell back.”
The kids have to start learn-
ing the importance of volun-
teering some time.
To volunteer as a Red Kettle
ringer, contact Sam Spayd at
541-991-6139.
To donate to the campaign,
visit one of the storefront lo-
cations listed in the article,
and make sure to bring cash or
checks.