MADISON COUNTY – When Christmas morning dawns, most people immediately remember their gifts waiting under their Christmas tree. What if your family could not afford gifts, even for the children?

To prevent this scenario for as many in-need individuals as possible, The Salvation Army conducts its Red Kettle campaign at many locations throughout Madison County and encourages people to donate money in the kettles.

Bell-ringers attract attention to the kettles as shoppers leave stores and offices. The Salvation Army needs volunteers to ring bells at kettles in Madison County for the 2023 Christmas season from Nov. 24 through Dec. 23. The kettles are open on Monday through Saturday.

Along with individuals, teams from businesses, clubs, churches and other organizations often form teams to share times for ringing.

To volunteer as a bell ringer, visit redkettlevolunteer.org/SouthernTerritory, and create an account with your email address and choice of password. Then, specify how many miles that you’re willing to travel and on which days. Select an assignment site that matches your criteria from the list. The Salvation Army will email a confirmation.

“The more volunteers, the more people can be helped in our community. All funds raised in our community stay in our community to support our local programs year-round,” Director of Development for the Huntsville Corps Claudia Bucher said.

In other outreach, The Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program helps to provide Christmas gifts annually for hundreds of thousands of children around the country. A child or senior adult completes registration, is confirmed and is accepted as an Angel Tree recipient.

Donors access the recipient’s Christmas wish list to select new clothing or toys. The Salvation Army distributes gifts to the family to place under their family Christmas tree.

In recent weeks, Majors Richard and Virginia Watts transferred to work in the Huntsville Corps. Salvation Army officers are transferred periodically to different locations, typically every three to five years. The Watts family relocated from Columbia, S.C.

Richard and Virginia Watts have served in The Salvation Army for more than 45 years. In Huntsville, the couple is responsible for all church programs and social services, including the shelter and family store.

The Salvation Army’s address is 2114 Oakwood Ave. NW in Huntsville. For more information, call 256-536-5576 or visit salvationarmyalm.org/Huntsville or Facebook/The Salvation Army Huntsville.