The Roher family at 2017's Christmas Kettle during Midnight Madness.
Red Salvation Army Christmas kettles are almost as iconic of Christmas as trees or carolers. Every winter, around shops and street corners across America, volunteers will stand in the cold with a red kettle and a bell, encouraging people to donate money to help those in need. The Christmas kettle is a very common sight, even in Wrangell. Major Michael Bates, with the Salvation Army, said that the kettles also have a very interesting history.
The Christmas Kettle was started in 1891, Bates said, by Salvation Army Captain Joseph McPhee in Oakland, California. McPhee had promised several people in need a Thanksgiving dinner, but had no means to provide it. Bates said that the captain had been a sailor once, and saw that in London it was common for people to stand near the docks with a pot to collect donations for the poor.
"What he did was he went down to the pier, in 1891, and did the same thing with a crab pot," Bates said.
McPhee was able to collect enough money to provide the Thanksgiving dinner he had promised, and since then the Christmas kettles have become a staple of Salvation Army traditions. Wrangell's Salvation Army will be launching their Christmas kettle the Saturday after Thanksgiving, on Nov. 24. The goal for this year's kettle is to raise $10,000. Bates called this a lofty goal for a small community like Wrangell, but feasible.
He added that all the money raised will stay local and will go to help the needy in the community.
"If everybody gave five dollars in our community, we'd meet our goal," he said. "Every penny, every dollar stays in Wrangell."
The 2018 Christmas kettle kicks off at 10 a.m. on Nov. 24, and will run until Christmas Eve. Kettles can be found in front of City Market and Bobs' IGA. Bates added that anybody interested in volunteering can contact the Salvation Army at (907) 874-3753.
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