by Craig Dirks
For Sam Wolff and his grandkids, ringing bells for The Salvation Army is a longstanding family tradition. They started ringing 12 years ago when Sam was a missionary in Africa. He’d come home to Minnesota for Christmas and wanted to ring bells out of appreciation for the good things he’d seen The Salvation Army do overseas.
“I admire the work of The Salvation Army,” said Sam, who spent more than three decades ministering in Kenya, Tanzania, and other countries with his wife, Cindy. “I saw The Salvation Army make wheelchairs and crutches for children with polio. I’ve seen the work they do, and I wanted to support it.”
After Sam signed up for his first bellringing shift in 2012, his oldest grandchild, Max, then about 6, asked if he could join. They had so much fun that they signed up to ring again the following Christmas—and the one after that.
As the years passed, more grandchildren joined the fun, and Cindy started ringing too. A tradition was born.
For the past two years, Sam and Cindy have rung bells with five of their grandkids, including Max, who is now 18. During one of their bellringing shifts, Cindy witnessed a touching moment between Max and a passerby as temperatures plummeted to four below.
“I remember somebody asked Max, ‘Why do you do this?’” Cindy recalled. “Without missing a beat, he said, ‘Because I know I’m doing something good.’ As his grandmother, that was one of the nicest things I’ve ever heard.”
Sam also has experienced stirring moments at the kettles. One of his favorites occurred several years ago.
“A man came up and donated $20 to my kettle, and you could tell he couldn’t afford it,” Sam said. “Then he told me, ‘I was on the receiving end of this for many years.’ That almost brought tears to my eyes.”
The family plans to ring together for many years to come.
“Volunteer bellringers like Sam, Cindy, and their grandkids are an inspiration to The Salvation Army and the people we serve,” said Lt. Colonel Randall Polsley, Northern divisional commander. “We are grateful to all bellringers for the time they spend—often in the bitter cold—helping us raise money to provide food, shelter, and care for people and families who need our help.”
