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Frank Lewis

PDT Staff Writer

If you see the familiar bell-ringers standing next to their red kettles over the next couple of weekends, don’t check your calendar, check your pocketbook for a few extra dollars for their hunger relief operations. The Portsmouth Salvation Army is staging “Christmas in July,” July 6 and 7 and July 13 and 14.

“Scioto County is one of the top counties in Ohio for food insecurity, and our main effort here at the Salvation Army has been to provide hunger relief,” Ferreira said. “We’ve got our community meals five days a week where we’re serving 800 to 1,100 meals each week. We’ve got our food pantry which has seen more and more people than ever, and the truth of the matter is the demand for services have increased, so we need to raise more money to meet the need.”

Ferreira said bell-ringers will be at three locations over those two weekends - Kmart, Blackburns, and at the Westside IGA.

“It will be a little bit of a strange thing to see a bell-ringer out there in hot weather, but the truth is that the need to feed hungry people is greater than ever,” Ferreira said. “And we’re willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that we can provide for people.”

Ferreira climbed the stairs to the second floor of the headquarters where the kettles, tripods, and signs are stored until after Thanksgiving and began to pull them out and prepare them for early duty.

“For those who are in a rough place, for those who are struggling, it’s good to know there are so many people who are willing to either volunteer their time or to put their spare change in a kettle to make a difference in their lives,” Ferreira said.

Frank Lewis may be reached at 740-353-3101, ext. 232, or at flewis@heartlandpublications.com