Wherever one goes this season there is bound to be bells ringing. And it's not tinnitus, a ringing of the ears. It's Salvation Army bell-ringers.
But where does the money go from the red kettles?
83 cents out of every dollar goes directly towards programming.
"Sometimes I think people just think that when they give money to us it goes into this big pot," Aaron Smith, Salvation Army community relations director said. "And it doesn't. We use exactly what we get."
All of the funding for Salvation Army services comes from Lawrence and Douglas County. Though they do send out 10 percent of their earnings to the Kansas City division for support with training and insurance.
The Salvation Army offers numerous programs including emergency assistance, lunches and shelter. They've been active in Lawrence for 120 years, and have changed with the needs of community.
"We've seen great depressions, wars, you know all of this stuff that is a big concern right now," Smith said. "But we know how to adapt. If it's having a temporary shelter, if it's starting up a food program: wherever we see that need we work hard to fill that gap."
Lawrence has been affected by a shortage of volunteers, though the Salvation Army estimates they have 175 volunteers that cover multiple slots.
"There are 20 locations but we've never filled every slot. If we did it with separate volunteers that'd take 3,700 volunteers," Smith said.
With its ability to adapt to the needs of the community it monitors what other organizations in Lawrence are doing in order make the most services possible. If another group is focusing more on a program that the Salvation Army has done in the past they may very well direct those in need there.
"We work close with other organizations in town. We work hard to not duplicate services," Smith Said. "We all want to help people. I suppose some people could see it as a competition kind of thing but really it's not about that."
The Salvation Army has applied for a Home and Urban Development (HUD) grant that would allow them to change its strategy in coming years.
"I think all agencies have to get to the point where they specialize in something," Captain Wesley Dalberg, Salvation Army corps officer said. "Rather than trying the shotgun approach where we try to hit everything, we try to be everything to everybody. I don't think any agency can do that."
The plan is called five areas over five years. It includes a transitional housing program, a community food bank, youth and children programming, a focused emergency assistance program and a recovery and reintegration program for those who were in jail or prison.
If the HUD grant is approved the Lawrence Salvation Army plans on closing its shelter that started 20 years ago. The Lawrence community shelter would become the shelter in Lawrence, which will allow the Salvation Army to change for the community's needs.
"We want to make good decisions because they don't just affect us. They affect the people we serve," Dalberg said.
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