What better way is there to find out what it is like to be a Salvation Army bell ringer than to volunteer myself, and that is just what I did yesterday.

I have not ever rung the bell for the Salvation Army and was excited to have the chance to find out what all it entailed.

My directions were first to go to the Salvation Army office at 530 Mission 66 Thursday evening and pick up the bells and kettle.

My assigned time to ring was at 9 a.m. and since that was the kickoff time for ringers, I had to secure the bell and kettle for the first shift.

Once I arrived at the Salvation Army office, Capt. Srikant Bhatnagar greeted me and thanked me profusely for volunteering my time for the annual fundraiser. He then handed me the kettle, bells and Salvation Army aprons while giving me instructions on how to set everything up once I arrived at Walmart the next day.

I reached the Walmart Supercenter on time Friday and had decided to wear my Santa hat. I thought ringing the bell would be the perfect excuse for me to wear the red cap, and besides it helped keep my head warm since the temperatures were still chilly outside.

All set up and feeling cute, I started the ringing. As shoppers came and went, I would smile and wish them happy holidays.

Most were responsive and retuned the gesture, but then there were a few who worked hard to ignore me or perhaps it was the tug at their hearts to drop money in the kettle.

I wanted to tell them it was OK. If you do not have anything to give now, I understand.

The highlight of my hour was of course when someone walked up and dropped money in the kettle, not because they thought I was looking so cute in the hat, but because they wanted to support the local projects of the Salvation Army, which include the Mission 66 Diner, their back-to-school drives, the Angel Tree and camps for children.

Capt. Bhatnagar told me that because the community was made aware of the local Salvation Army’s shortfall, people are stepping up this season and have been generous when contributing to their kettle drive.

“The buckets are getting double this year,” he said, adding each bucket is getting $70 to $80 a day.

Last year, more than 6,700 people were served by the local Salvation Army and more than 50,000 meals were provided. Almost 150 people received rent assistance and more than 200 were helped paying their utility bills.

Bhatnagar is aiming to continue these outreach services the Salvation Army sponsors and with the community’s generous giving to the kettle, programs can stay alive.

There are five to 10 groups in town that have volunteered to ring for the Salvation Army, Bhatnagar said, and he has almost 20 paid ringers.

Ringing the bell was an easy way for me to give back to the community while at the same time having fun.

If anyone is interested in helping ring bells, call 601-636-2706 and don’t forget to drop money in a kettle.