The Salvation Army needs donations of funds, food and toys to help make the holidays brighter for those in need in Kankakee County.

The Salvation Army kicked off its annual Christmas kettle drive Friday at a luncheon at the Corps Community Center, 148 N. Harrison, Kankakee.

The goal this year is to raise $75,000. Twelve kettles are out at 10 different locations.

The kettles are open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Christmas Eve. Kettles are never manned on Sundays.

Volunteers are sought and encouraged to ring the bell. Persons can sign up at registertoring.com. Salvation Army Lt. LaToya Surratt hopes that companies, service clubs and families will sign up as groups.

“We are asking people to get their groups together,” she said. “We need all the volunteers we can get,” she said.

Shifts this year are in four-hour increments.

In addition to putting money in the kettles, you can give in other ways. A mail appeal goes out in the community. People can also give virtually at sakankakee.org.

People and businesses can also sponsor kettles. Sponsorships range from $250 to $2,000. Contact Lt. Surratt at latoya.surratt@usc.salvationarmy.org or 815-933-8421 for sponsorship information.

This year’s theme is “Give with Joy.” Denny Case of WVLI is the campaign chair. He has been a volunteer bellringer for eight years.

“When I was younger, we didn’t have all that much,” he said. “When other organizations said ‘No,’ the Salvation Army said ‘Yes.’ I am forever in their debt,” Case said of the Salvation Army.

The event also included Christmas music from the Chicago-area Salvation Army band and some of the first donations of the season as people lined up to donate to a kettle as Case rang the bell.

At its kettle kickoff, the Salvation Army pointed to its services provided in 2024.

Last year, the Salvation Army provided 15,636 hot lunches and gave out 3,313 food boxes to those in need. About 1,232 people were provided with clothing, and 401 boxes of food were given out for the Christmas holiday.

During the year, 352 folks were given housing assistance, and the Salvation Army helped with utility bills for 209 households.

Case reminded the audience of about 50 people that the Salvation Army gives help year-round, not just at Christmas. And funds are needed year-round, too, though the red kettles remain the most visible symbol of the Salvation Army.

• Food donation barrels for cans and dry goods are out at banks, churches, libraries and police and fire departments. The barrels are also at Dollar General stores.

• Toys can be brought to the Salvation Army Corps Center, 148 N. Harrison, through Dec. 12. The toys should be new and unwrapped. No guns, knives or toys that promote violence are permitted. The corps office is open Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• You can also pick a tag off an Angel Tree to buy gifts for a child of a specific age. Those gifts will go to youths 15 and younger. The tagged trees are located at Northfield Square, Walmart and the Salvation Army.

Lt. Surratt got teary-eyed as she spoke to the audience.

“Families in Kankakee need us,” she said.