ROCKLAND — Black Friday might be a day for shoppers, but it also marks the beginning of a tradition that goes back almost 100 years and is as much a part of Christmas as buying gifts. The Rockland Salvation Army will place itsred kettles and bell ringers around the city to collect money for those less fortunate.

We've all heard the ringing of the bell as we exit and enter stores, but did you know how it all started.

Wayne Bink is the Captain at The Salvation Army, Rockland office. He tells us that it all started with soup 100 years ago.

"It was started a long time ago, when they had kettles that they would cook soup in," he said. "They would raise the money in the kettle to pay for soup they were going to make in it later."

The idea caught on.

"They would do it during Christmas time because that's when they were trying to raise money for soup for people in the cold months," said Bink. "That was in London, England. And now it has become a huge fundraiser for the Salvation Army at Christmas time to help with all those efforts that we have going on now and throughout the year."

How many locations does The Salvation Army have in Rockland?

"Here in Knox County we have about five locations that we stand at," said Bink. "The main location is Walmart, which has two doors, and then we have Shaw's and in Camden we have Hannaford's, and French & Brawn sometimes."

Most of the people who man the bell ringing stations are volunteers.

"We do pay a few people," said Bink. "It's a minimum wage and it's typically to help those who need an extra income during the holidays, too. Some people cannot work a full time job, so this is just a seasonal job. Something they can handle to help them during Christmas time. Half of the bell ringers are usually paid and half are volunteers."

Even though there are only five locations, the Salvation Army raises a substantial amount of money.

"We raise about $28,000, "said Bink. "The people in this community are very generous, which is a huge help to us."

Bink said the money goes to help support the ministry on an ongoing basis year round.

"We support the building that we provide those ministries with and the various ministries that we have going on inside the building," he said. "We have a number of feeder programs, youth programs, we have a karate program and we also have a full functioning church that takes place in here."

The programs take place throughout the year.

"We also have financial services where we help people with oil through the winter months," he said. "We help people with vouchers to go to our store if they need a coat, or need clothes, especially when seasons change."

"The idea here is that with every penny we raise we are seeking to do the most good with it that we possibly can," he said. "We want to push it right back out to our community where the need is."

Bink is originally from upstate New York.

"I grew up near Albany," he said. "I've been with the Salvation Army for 14 years. I've been an officer in the Salvation Army for 10 years and I've been in Rockland for five. We've been here for a little while."

The idea of the Salvation Army is to always provide a safety net to those who need it.

"It goes beyond spiritual, it goes beyond functional, it's whatever the need is," Bink said. "We're looking to try and meet that need for that person. Are we able to do it all the time? No, but we try and we do our best to work at it. We're here to help people who are in need of help."

The Salvation Army is open Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Clothes, toys and financial assistance determines the person you would meet with.

"Heating assistance doesn't normally begin until December; that's where the kettle money comes into play," Bink said. "We need the money to give out before we can do that. We chose Tuesdays and Thursdays because the Area Interfaith food pantry is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday. That way a person who is in need of food, can find food any day of the week."

To set your business up for a bell ringer and collection site for the Salvation Army email wayne.bink@use.salvationarmy.org to arrange for interview.

And listen this year for the bells of Christmas asking you to help those in need.