Page 16 University Daily Kansan, December 7, 1982
Salvation Army bells ring in help for poor
Above the roar of car motors and in the midst of hurried Christmas shoppers, the sound of a single bell tinkles clearly into the darkness.
By JULIE HEABERLIN Staff Reporter
Faithfully, unwearing, on street corners and in shopping centers, Salvation Army bellringers with passers-by fill red metal pots with donations that will brighten Christmas morning for children who can only dream of receiving presents.
"I've been there before, and I just want to give somebody else a Christmas, etc."
SOME OF THE bellringers burst forth with a hearty "God bless you" as coins clank into the pot, while others simply smile their thanks quietly.
"I saw the advertisement in the paper the other day and I just wanted to help out," says 45-year-old Joe Mendell, who alone with a grin and a "Merry Christmas."
“it’s definitely not boring. My hand did get plumb wore out, though, because I rang this bell for two hours before I took a break.”
MENDELL SAID that donors were of all ages, from tiny children who begged their mothers for pennies to drop in to little old ladies who peered questioningly at the sign before straightening out a crumpled dollar bill.
But surprisingly, Mendell said, most who stopped at his stand that day were young people, usually wearing KU sweat-shirts.
Like many of the bellringers, Mendell is also struggling to pick up some pocket change for his own Christmas. The Salvation Army in Lawrence has been doing a double deed for the past three years by selecting and paying 25 bellringers, both young and old, who are unemployed and cannot find work.
In an effort to feed and give presents to more than 500 needy families in Lawrence, the local Salvation Army hopes to raise $30,000 through bellringing and other donations this holiday season, accustomed to local director Capt. Bob Thomson.
THE NONSECTARIAN Christian organization is fulfilling its time-worn traditions by providing food baskets, grocery vouchers and toys for poor families at Christmas, said Thomson, who has worked nine years for the Salvation Army.
Economic conditions and the holiday season will probably triple the usual caseload during the month of December, he said.
Thomson said staff and volunteers also brought sample tests to prisoners so they could choose a gift for their children who were waiting for them at home. Once the prisoner selects a toy, the Salvation Army workers送得 the gift from the parent without the children ever knowing the organization was involved.
"IT'S SCARY YOU walk into a prison and realize you will be talking with a convicted murderer." Thomson said. "and then you sit there with them while they cry and pick out a doll for their little girl. It's a paradox."
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