Posted on 12/13/2004 9:17:12 AM PST by Land_of_Lincoln_John
Minneapolis-based Target Corp.'s decision this fall to stop allowing Salvation Army bell ringers at its stores has turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the Lake County Salvation Army.
Capt. Diana Williams said she lost three locations with Target's decision, and touched off a search prior to the start of the kettle drive to find replacement sites at other stores.
She looked at corporations the Salvation Army already knew would allow bell ringers, and contacted the local stores.
The result - seven new sites for a net gain of four. Salvation Army now operates 27 bell-ringer locations in Lake County.
"We raised $25,000 at those three (Target) stores last year. Out of the $113,000 we raised last year, that's quite a bit of money," Williams said. "But we're doing very good at the new locations. We're over last year's numbers at this point."
Target Corp. made the announcement before the holiday season began, basing the decision on its corporate policy. The company previously had made an exception for the Salvation Army, but as more and more nonprofit groups asked Target to allow them to seek donations at its stores, the company decided it was time to end the exception for the Salvation Army.
It was the latest of several large corporations - including retailers like Best Buy and Circuit City - to ban the bell ringers.
Litsa Press, a professor of marketing at the College of Lake County, said Target's reason makes sense, not just for the company itself, but also for shoppers who may feel uncomfortable with the bell ringers.
"A lot of us don't carry a lot of cash on us anymore," Press said. "It can be an embarrassment to not put some money in the kettle."
Still, every location is vital, Williams said, because the group receives no funding from the United Way or the government, and its mail-appeal fund-raising is lagging.
Salvation Army is a Christian organization, started in 1865, that provides food, clothing, shelter and many other services to people in need. Williams said the agency's efforts are far-reaching and growing every year.
"We are a vital part of the community. We help out as much as we can, as many people as we can," Williams said. "We help people pay for rent, prescriptions, utilities, gas, train tickets, bus tickets. We had a man last year who needed his vehicle registration paid for so he could work.
"We help with all kinds of things, but our services have tripled," she added.
Williams scanned the Internet to find where traditional partners, such as Wal-Mart and Jewel, had opened new stores that might be fertile ground for kettle locations.
She said she had planned already to look for new locations for bell ringers this season to replace some locations that did not perform as well as she had hoped. Target's decision made the search even more important.
"It made me start looking for these new locations earlier," Williams said. "If I didn't, I may not have looked very hard or very seriously. It made me get proactive."
David Shepard, an assistant manager at the Antioch Super Wal-Mart, one of the new locations, said the store's corporate policy made it easy to say "yes" to the Salvation Army.
"We're extremely happy to have the bell ringers here. They're a very good organization," he said.
Williams said she understood why Target made the decision.
"We don't hold any ill feelings toward Target at all, and I think it's important for the public to understand that," Williams said.
Her goal this year is to raise $150,000 through the bell ringers, though she harbors hopes it'll be closer to $200,000.
"That money is for everything we do here at the corps," she said. "It pays for our utilities, employee salaries, the programs we have for our church and all our social services. It pays for everything."
Over the years, I have walked by the red Salvation Army bucket and the bell ringer more times than I have stopped and made a donation.
This year, I have stopped EVERY time and dropped some bills into the bucket. In fact, Saturday I got my haircut, heard the bell ringer off in the distance and walked 100 yards or so and dropped a Five in the bucket.
I can see why the Salvation Army is doing better this year, even without Target... I'm sure there are many more people like me.
What a crock of unadulterated crap! This is so lame!
Jason King?
http://www.cultv.co.uk/jasonking.htm
I notice plenty of empty parking space at our local Target stores as I drive by to take my money to more Christmas-friendly merchants.
"I can see why the Salvation Army is doing better this year, even without Target... I'm sure there are many more people like me."
Yup. My story is the same-- I never used to give to them, but this year, after the Target decision, I made a vow to drop at least a buck in the kettle each time I passed one. Only missed it once-- didn't have ANY cash on me. ;)
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