# How Do You Know If The Guy Ringing The Bell Is Really With The Salvation Army? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 5, 2002, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750 "2002-12-05T19:20:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/1 "2002-12-05T19:20:20Z")
When you see one of those guys with a kettle and a bell outside of a business at this time of the year, how do you know he’s really with the Salvation Army? Are there a lot of S.A. imposters? It seems like it would be a very lucrative scam. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/2 "2002-12-05T19:34:20Z")
I’ve actually rung bells for the Salvation Army. They don’t give you any special ID or anything, but it would be pretty hard to get a hold of one of those kettles. I don’t know how you could except to try to grab one and run (and they’re really, really heavy). Even if you did, then SA knows where their kettles are and who is supposed to be manning them. All they would have to do is tell the police where the legitimate spots are, and the cops could just look around all the malls and whatnot for an unauthorized kettle. BTW, you would also need a key to get the money out of the kettle. I suppose they could be broken into, but it would be difficult. To answer the OP, if they’ve got one of those kettles, they’re almost certainly legit. If they’ve got a coffee can or something really light and portable ask them what their corps is. If they give you a blank look, alert store security. (actually, the stores and malls already clear everything with SA beforehand, so a guy just couldn’t go and set up shop without being questioned). It would be a pretty tough scam to pull off. I think it’s easier to stick to phone scams and phoney door-to-door “charity drives.” ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/3 "2002-12-05T19:41:06Z")
> [@](#): > > [A]sk them what their corps is. If they give you a blank look, alert store security. What is the correct answer to “what is your corps”? ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/4 "2002-12-05T19:43:26Z")
Heck - “kettles”??? Are they the correct things for the money-collecting? (Sorry - language problem here). ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/5 "2002-12-05T19:50:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Attrayant \* > \*\*What is the correct answer to “what is your corps”? \*\* 1. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/6 "2002-12-05T19:55:41Z")
SECURITY!! ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/7 "2002-12-05T20:02:50Z")
_…ask them what their corps is._ I’ve been ringing for SA for years through my church. No one has ever even mentioned the word “corps.” I doubt that asking about their corps is a reliable determinant. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/8 "2002-12-05T20:06:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Celyn \* > \*\*Heck - “kettles”??? > > Are they the correct things for the money-collecting? (Sorry - language problem here). \*\* A kettle is a cooking pot, usually large, often with a bail handle (swivels over the top) or feet. The SA pots have a shape that resembles a typical kettle, so that’s what they call them. ---
**Author:** ![lucwarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@lucwarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lucwarm)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/9 "2002-12-05T20:09:15Z")
And of course this thread would not be complete without the obligatory reference to Eddy Murphy’s famous “Mr. Robber” sketch from Saturday Night Live. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/10 "2002-12-05T20:16:02Z")
I’d probably do it… if somehow my house was relocated onto a frikken’ toll road. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/11 "2002-12-05T21:04:11Z")
> [@](#): > > The SA pots have a shape that resembles a typical kettle, so that’s what they call them. And they’re usually red. (Take THAT, pot!) ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/12 "2002-12-05T21:24:27Z")
I don’t think I have encountered any fake Sally Army types. Anyway - all those brass bands are worht paying money to get away from. Hoever, other very dubious charites who won’t state clearly who they are - well I have had fun loudly exclaiming who they really are, when they arrive, vaguely demanding for “poor children” or some such thing. “Ah I see, you mean Moonies then” and so on They don’t like it much. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/13 "2002-12-05T21:28:58Z")
This is the second thread today that made me think of my favorite scene in _Gone With the Wind_ – when the guy in uniform comes around with a basket and says, “Ladies, the Confederacy requests your jewelry.” What a great scam! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/14 "2002-12-05T22:37:21Z")
I did see a SA ringer with a photo ID badge. Dunno if that’s local to San Antonio or not, though. Robin ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/15 "2002-12-05T23:20:37Z")
Would this really be a great scam? How much money can a guy make in a day standing in the cold freezing his ass off ringing a bell? Odds are the best traffic spots are manned by legit SA workers… How much is **in** one of those red pots anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2002, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/16 "2002-12-06T02:28:07Z")
> [@](#): > > …ask them what their corps is. > > I’ve been ringing for SA for years through my church. No one has ever even mentioned the word “corps.” I doubt that asking about their corps is a reliable determinant A “Corps” is simply the word for the individual church’s within S.A. There is always a specific Corps that is responsible for any particular kettle. I guess that some volunteers are recruited in such a way that they might not be aware that they are ringing bells for a specific church. So if they don’t know what a corps is, just ask them who recruited them. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2002, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/17 "2002-12-06T02:37:40Z")
**Max** , the people who ring the bells cannot access the money so it’s hard to tell how much is in there. You get an awful lot of pocket change. I’d say on a good day, at a busy mall, during the Xmas season, you might get a few hundred dollars, but I’m just totally guessing. It’s pretty wildly variable from one spot to another. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2002, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/18 "2002-12-06T05:35:53Z")
Unless they’re actually “In Uniform” they aren’t a member od the Salvation Army…just some volunteer. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2002, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/19 "2002-12-06T08:08:10Z")
I ask them if they know what a Texas Leaguer is 😉 ---
**Author:** ![mrcrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@mrcrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrcrow)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2002, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-if-the-guy-ringing-the-bell-is-really-with-the-salvation-army/140750/20 "2002-12-06T08:56:23Z")
say to the person ‘if i wanted to check your identity and authority to collect money here, who would you suggest i contact in the salvation army’ 🆒