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Salvation Army Volunteer and Hanford Resident Attempts to Break World Record During World Record Bell Ringing Contest
HANFORD, CA
Local resident and volunteer Salvation Army bell ringer Quinton Green will compete with 5 other Salvation Army volunteer bell ringers in an attempt to set a new world record for the longest continuous hand bell-ringing by an individual. Beginning on Giving Tuesday, December 3, 2013, at noon (ET), the third annual World Record Bell Ringing Contest seeks to raise awareness for The Salvation Army’s 123rd Red Kettle Campaign. Bell ringers will set an official Salvation Army record for 2013 when they surpass the 80-hour record set in 2012.
Quinton will make his world record attempt at Hanford Walmart Supercenter. Last year, multiple contestants surpassed the previous year’s 60-hour record, but Ryan Gass, Jason Perkins and Darrell Tureskis all rang for 80 hours total.
Bell ringers, which include Salvation Army officers, staff and community members, will volunteer their time as they ring bells for the 123rd annual Red Kettle Campaign. The bell ringers in the World Record Bell Ringing Contest will be stationed in various cities throughout the United States. Every participant must follow several mentally and physically punishing rules.
Rules include:
- Contestants must ring a bell continuously.
- Participants must stand the entire time.
- No self-playing instruments or other aids may be used during the attempt.
- Contestants accrue five minutes of rest after each 60 minutes of ringing.
- Breaks are the only time contestants are permitted to stop ringing, eat, sit or lie down, leave the kettle stand, use the restroom or sleep.
- Contestants may drink nonalcoholic beverages during the attempt, but that may not disrupt ringing activity.
Some contestants participating in the World Record Bell Ringing Contest will also live-tweet and stream their record-setting attempts. Contestants and Twitter followers can use the hashtag #RINGITON to follow the action. Some participants will also use Ustream so that people nationwide can watch as they ring bells for The Salvation Army.
Contestants participating in the World Record Bell Ringing Contest include:
- Major Marcelino "Butch" Soriano from San Diego, CA
- Captain Emily Jones from Compton, CA
- Quinton Green from Hanford, CA
- Lt. Rob Lawler from Helena, MT
- Captain Brickson from Albert Lea, MN
- Andre Thompson from Tyler, TX
The Red Kettle Campaign, the longest-running fundraiser of its kind, was started by Salvation Army Captain Joseph McFee in San Francisco in 1891. Since that time, the Red Kettle Campaign has grown into one of the most recognizable and important charitable campaigns in the United States. As part of the campaign, more than 25,000 Salvation Army workers and volunteers throughout the country ring bells daily and solicit holiday shoppers' spare-change donations to the iconic red kettles. In 2010, the campaign collected more than $142 million of the public's nickels, dimes, quarters, dollars and credit cards nationwide, a new record. It helped The Salvation Army serve 30 million people in the communities where the money was raised.
For updates on the world-record contest as it takes place, please visit the Facebook page.
More information on the Red Kettle Campaign is available at www.salvationarmyusa.org