A sure sign of the upcoming holidays will make its first appearance Friday. The Salvation Army will officially launch this year's Red Kettle campaign in Bettendorf.
Quad Cities Coordinator, Major Robert Doliber, says donations during the Christmas season make up as much as 40 per cent of their annual budget.
"More people are out of work and stressed and fearful about things that are going on so we expect the need to be greater. The challenge is with fewer people shopping in person, and more people shopping online, is that donations could drop so that's why we need the public to be very generous as they have been in the past."
The Salvation Army is encouraging "contact-less" donations.
"Whether it be at the kettle site with the Apple Pay, Google Pay, and QR codes at the kettles, or by Virtual Kettle - we do have online kettle options if they go to our webpage."
Doliber says the kettles will be accepting donations at 40 locations around the Quad Cities, and all bell-ringers will wear masks and practice social distancing.
The official goal for this year's Red Kettles will not be announced until Friday afternoon.
The kickoff will be held at the in Bettendorf at the Hy-Vee store on Devil's Glen Road, with the first donations from Mayor Bob Gallagher, Annika Tunberg from Whitey's, and Radar, the mascot of the Quad City Storm.
to donate online: www.SalArmy.US/DavenportKettle or www.SalArmy.US/MolineKettle
