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Hooked on bell ringing

40-year volunteer for Salvation Army continues service as he encourages volunteerism in teens

By Marissa Harshman, Columbian Health Reporter
Published: December 25, 2009, 12:00am
3 Photos
Bruce Davis rings a Salvation Army bell as he has almost every year since 1968.
Bruce Davis rings a Salvation Army bell as he has almost every year since 1968. Photo Gallery

In 40 years of volunteering for the Salvation Army, Bruce Davis has perfected the wrist movements for bell ringing, learned how to spot someone trying to avoid the red kettle and convinced countless teenagers to give up their Saturday mornings to join him.

It only took two hours standing on a sidewalk for Davis to get hooked on helping.

“I’ve been ringing the bell ever since,” the 65-year-old Vancouver real estate broker said.

Now Davis is fostering volunteerism in local teens.

On a recent Saturday, Davis once again slipped on a red apron and took his spot in front of a Salmon Creek supermarket. He was joined by Skyview High School students.

As an adviser of the school’s Key Club, Davis asks each student to volunteer two hours to stand next to a red kettle and jingle the bells.

“He always encourages us to sign up, and it’s important to follow through,” 18-year-old Katie Dickinson said.

Dickinson and two fellow club members — Katherine Wyrick, 17, and Emily Davis, 17 — arrived bundled against the cold and full of Christmas cheer.

Throughout the years, Davis and the young volunteers have learned to read the moods of people as they approach. Avoiding eye contact and taking the long route to the front door of a grocery store is a sure sign the customer is trying to bypass the bell-ringers and the donation kettle. But the volunteers bear no ill will toward those who don’t give.

“It’s OK if they don’t,” Dickinson said. “It’s not everyone’s priority this year.”

When people do donate — whether it’s a few nickels or a couple dollars — Davis makes sure every person knows their contribution counts.

“Thank you very much,” Davis says. “We appreciate it. Happy holidays.”

The group also tried to spread a little holiday cheer, and pass the time in the cold, by singing Christmas classics such as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and less-common holiday jingles such as “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.” They sang “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. The music prompted smiles and dancing by passers-by, some of whom even began to sing along.

The Skyview seniors said they didn’t mind forfeiting a couple hours of their weekend to benefit the Salvation Army.

“It’s fun,” Emily Davis said. “And a lot of people donate, so it’s for a good cause.”

It’s a cause that Davis has helped for more than twice as long as the students have been alive.

In 1968, Davis was a father in his 20s, living and working in north Portland. One day a local jeweler walked into the loan company where Davis worked and said he needed his help for two hours the following Saturday. After some convincing, Davis agreed.

When Davis arrived at the store that Saturday morning, he found several businessmen wearing Salvation Army aprons and holding bells. The men were members of the local chapter of Kiwanis, and by the following week, so was Davis.

He’s been a member, and a bell-ringer, ever since.

Davis took a five-year hiatus from volunteering when his daughters, Candy and Tracy, were in their teens but found his life seemed less fulfilled.

“I was miserable,” he said. “I just felt empty.”

So Davis returned to volunteering. Now he volunteers for various causes most of the year; he reserves the summer months for visiting his grandchildren in Corvallis, Ore., and Langley, B.C. As a member of the Salmon Creek Kiwanis, Davis devotes his time to various community events, including the annual Walk & Knock food drive. He’s also a member of the Salvation Army advisory board and meets weekly with a lunch buddy at Dwight D. Eisenhower Elementary. For the past 25 years, Davis has also fired the starter’s gun at various middle and high school track events, a job that began as volunteer service and turned into a paying position.

Davis won’t likely give up his commitments any time soon. He said as long as he has health, time and a little bit of money, he’ll continue to volunteer.

“We have to remember we’re not the only pebble on the beach, that there are many people hurting out there,” Davis said. “To be oblivious and not help doesn’t seem right.”

During this tough economy, particularly during the holiday season, Davis said many more people are feeling the pain of losing jobs, dwindling income and growing expenses. That’s why Davis volunteers during the toughest time of the year and stands with a Salvation Army kettle on Christmas Eve — a time when most want to be home with their families.

“When people have crises in their lives, it’s never convenient for us,” Davis said. “So when people are in crisis, they can’t wait for it to be convenient for us to help.”

Those crises and the constant need is what drives Davis to stand in the cold — apron on, bell in hand — year in and year out.

Marissa Harshman: 360-735-4546 or marissa.harshman@columbian.com.

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Columbian Health Reporter