One Way to Ring, Three Ways to Win!

It's that time of year again where the ringing of bells can be heard outside the doors of many local stores. A time where a few courageous souls bundle up, and daringly man a red kettle stand. The Salvation Army and the Marquette Community want to say thank you to all of the people who brave the cold to ring bells!

What better way to say thanks than with some fantastic prizes? Want to know how you could take home one of these fabulous prizes this season? Keep reading...


This kettle season we are offering THREE, that's right, THREE ways to win!


The First Way: Ring with a youth!
Any youth 16 and under who rings with an adult may be entered to win. You must call the office once you have completed your shift and register for our drawing! Office hours are M-F from 9:30-3:30.


The Second Way: Tell us all about it!
Visit the Salvation Army Thrift Store - Marquette facebook page and tell us when or where you are signed up to ring bells. You must comment on and share the pinned post in order to be eligible to win. Oh, and while you are there don't forget to like our page! Everyone who comments, likes, shares and rings will be entered into a drawing for prizes!


The Third Way: Ring on a Friday or Saturday!
Every Friday and Saturday during the bell ringing season someone from The Marquette Salvation Army will be giving out a prize. In order to be eligible to win, you must have registered to ring and you must be at your kettle when we show up. One lucky winner will be selected each Friday and Saturday.


To sign up to ring bells visit us online at www.samarquette.org or give us a call at 906-226-2241.


Additional Details: In order to be eligible to win prizes you must...
-  Officially register to ring bells by signing up online or by calling 226-2241.
- Show up and ring for your entire shift
- Follow all bell ringing policies located at your kettle stand in regard to conduct and appropriate ringing.
- Be at least 16 years of age or accompanied by an adult


Now that you have stuck with us through all of that, we are sure you want to know more about the prizes! Here are only some of the great things that will be up for grabs!


- Tickets to NMU's production of The Secret Garden
- Movie Passes from Thomas Theatre
- Aubree's Gift Cards
- Buffalo Wild Wings Gift Certificates
- A Family Membership to the Upper Peninsula Children's Museum
- Prizes donated by Getz's and Sayklly's
- Culver's certificates for some great free food
- Red Lobster Gift Certificates
- 90 Day Membership to Anytime Fitness
Thank you for volunteering and Happy Ringing!

Christmas Time is Here Again!

It’s Christmas time here at The Salvation Army of Marquette.  Toy Distribution is now available through our Client-Choice Food Pantry for families with children ages birth through 14, and continues through Tuesday, December 22^nd.   To access the pantry, you must have a Pantry Access Card or call 226-2241 to ask how to apply.  In addition, we facilitate the Adopt-A-Family for Christmas Program as well.  So far, we have received 22 applications and 13 families are still waiting to be adopted!  If you or your organization/group would like to adopt a family, please contact the Case Manager, Cyndy Rankinen, at 226-2241 and we will match you with a family in need.

And speaking of the holidays, Our Daily Bread lunch program will be offering a Thanksgiving Dinner on Wednesday, November 23^rd from Noon to 2:00 p.m.  Please join us!  Our Chef is looking for several items for the dinner and would appreciate any donations:

• Cool Whip or Whipped Cream
• Butter (not margarine)
• Cream Cheese
• Turkey Gravy
• Graham Crackers
• French Fried Onions

Last, but certainly not least, we are desperately in need of volunteer Bell Ringers.  Our Red Kettle Campaign during the holidays is a major fundraiser for The Salvation Army.  Did you know that our corps is TOTALLY SUPPORTED BY LOCAL DONATIONS?!   This includes the cost of operating our facility, as well as staff salaries, purchasing food for our lunch program and food pantry, and all other costs associated with our services.  Without volunteers to man our kettles and ring bells, local donations have been down over the past few years.  This decrease has had a tremendous impact on the operations of the corps.  Please consider donating your time to ring bells for The Salvation Army so we can continue “Doing the most good” for our community. Sign up to ring bells by calling 906-226-2241 or go online www.samarquette.org.

Thank you and may you have a wonderful holiday season! 

The Story Behind the Cereal

A few weeks ago I was sitting at work when we received a phone call from a local news station. A story had not panned out and they wanted to know if they could do a story on our food pantry. We all did a little happy dance, a big happy dance, and said YES!

Happy Dance!

Why the happy dance? Well, if you happened to catch the story you would have heard that our pantry has been in a bit of trouble.


School was about to begin. Lunches needed to be packed. Budgets were stretched due to the increased cost of school supplies and to top it all off we were running out of food in many of the categories we offer. We had no breakfast items left on the shelf. Items like macaroni and cheese, peanut butter and jelly, and fruit were quickly becoming depleted. As staff we were cutting back on how much food we were giving out and discussing options for our quickly diminishing pantry. Enter the phone call and subsequently the happy dance!


Once the story ran, and awareness spread, our community began to respond. Cereal showed up at our door, as well as, supplies of peanut butter, jelly, and much more. Two separate businesses even went shopping to help us stock our shelves. We were all touched by the generosity of the community, but it took a special donation for us to really understand the impact of stocked shelves.

One afternoon, after a particularly busy day, an elderly gentleman walked into our lobby. He said he had some cereal to donate and would like some help bringing it into the building. There were two of us still at work so we grabbed a cart from the backroom and headed out to lend a hand. The man had quite a few bags in the back of the car and as he handed them to us we loaded up the cart. We thanked him for his generosity and let him know just how much it meant to us that he was willing to help others in need.

It was then that he turned to us and asked if we would like to hear the story behind the cereal. My co-worker and I exchanged a look of intrigue and agreed. He began to tell us his story.

Many years ago he was a young man, newly married. His wife had just given birth to a baby boy. Their son was seven days old when this man was called away to war.  Times were tough, the draft was in full force, and rations were in short supply. This man’s wife and baby ended up sick and struggling to find adequate food. He told us about how she found a Salvation Army and went to them hoping that they might be able to do something. With tears running down his cheeks, this humbled man told us
                                                “You saved them. You saved their lives.”

Guys, this is what the Salvation Army is all about. We help people. But more than that, if we really break it down – you help people. The Salvation Army is made up of basic things. We have a building, a church, a staff and the resources that you provide. When this man’s wife and child showed up on the doorstep of that Salvation Army many years ago they would have welcomed her with open arms. They would have held her hand, prayed with her, talked to her and offered to be there for her. But, they would not have been able to feed her, “to save her” from starvation without the support of their community. That is the power of your generosity.

So, the next time you are in the grocery store and you see a box of cereal, think of us and consider buying just a few extra groceries to help stock our shelves or stop by and give a donation to help support your community. Better yet? I want to challenge you to be intentional. Plan a day to go shopping specifically for the purpose of giving back, or get out in your community and serve, or simply share this post and spread the word that giving and serving others really does make a difference.

Super Couponer Donations!

We hear a lot about Coupon Moms and those super shoppers who use coupons and shopping apps to score amazing deals and cartloads of products for pennies on the dollar at times.  What we do not often hear about are the amazing generosity of these same people when they donate these loads of extra items to charities in need.


On August 3rd, 2015 a group of couponers from the SuperMom Couponing group and Coupon Addicts MQT Mi brought a large donation to the Marquette Salvation Army to help families who may struggle with those items we do not often find donated.  Food comes in regularly from our generous donors, but items like deodorant, shampoo, household cleaning products, and toothbrushes to name a few, are not often donated.  These are items which people who may be on fixed incomes, have no income, or only receive food stamps cannot afford to buy at times and so this will go a long way to helping with those other costs most people might not realize are a hardship for those in need.


All told, approximately 500 pounds of hygiene and household goods, as well as food, were donated to the Food Pantry to help our less fortunate neighbors.  Three trucks and numerous boxes were unloaded and now we're smiling as we stock our shelves and wait for the delight of our pantry participants as they see what surprises are waiting for them.


A large thank you to all the group participants who donated to this drive, and to Becky Morrison for setting it up for us. 

Thank you MARESA!

The Salvation Army of Marquette wants to extend a sincere and heartfelt THANK YOU to the MARESA Transition Program for all their help in serving lunches in Our Daily Bread lunch program each Wednesday.  Every week, this group of students prepare and serve a delicious lunch under the direction of their Coordinators, Kelli and Jill.

If you have a group who would be interested in assisting us with our lunch program, or some other area of The Salvation Army, we encourage you to contact us at (906) 226-2241 and we'd be happy to discuss the opportunities available. 

Calling all cooks!

Do you like to cook? 

Love a creative challenge? 

Enjoy working with people ?

The Salvation Army of Marquette is calling all cooks and chefs to lend us their cooking skills in our kitchen preparing and serving lunch in preparation for hiring a new cook later this year.  If you might be interested in cooking for us, or know someone who is, this is a great way to ‘audition’ for us and show us your skills.  It is also a good way to see how our kitchen differs from a commercial kitchen and whether it would be a good fit. 

We serve a daily lunch Monday through Saturday at 12:00noon for any member of the community who wishes to join us, as well as themed luncheons for different holidays and a few other events, such as our volunteer luncheon and donor breakfasts.  For more information or to see about volunteering for our program, please contact Cyndy Rankinen at (906) 226-2241.

The Salvation Army News

On Wednesday April 1st, ABC 10 visited The Salvation Army to get more information on NMU Cat Packs, feeding area children when they're not in school.  Watch the video above to see what Cat Packs are all about.  For more information or to find out how you can help out, contact The Salvation Army at (906) 226-2241.

On Thursday March 26th, ABC 10 visited the Salvation Army Thrift Store to find out more about our Saturday Bag Sales and the store in general.  Watch the video to see how it went and for more information, please contact The Thrift Store at (906) 228-2930.