The newly elected mayors of Bryan and College Station collected more than $8,500 dollars during their first participation in the Salvation Army’s annual red kettle ringoff.
The Salvation Army announced Bryan mayor Bobby Gutierrez collected $6,264.24 and College Station mayor John Nichols collected $2,244.04.
The city of Bryan won for the 15th consecutive year.
Volunteers are still being recruited to ring bells at local red kettle stations through Christmas Eve.
Register to volunteer and/or donate to the red kettle campaign, which goes to funding local Salvation Army programs throughout the year, at salvationarmybcs.org.
News release from the Bryan/College Station Salvation Army:
This past Saturday’s 16th Annual Mayor Ring Off was another great success for The Salvation Army of Bryan/College Station.
The newly elected mayor of College Station, John Nichols, and the newly elected mayor of the city of Bryan, Bobby Gutierrez, went head-to-head on Saturday, December 3, 2022 to ring for one hour at their designated Walmart within their city to raise the most Red Kettle funds.
Generous citizens of each city placed their donations in-person and online to show their support toward fellow neighbors and their favorite mayor.
“This is annually one of our largest days of fundraising for our Red Kettle Season to help raise critical funds for all we do at The Salvation Army to help those in need in the community,” said Captain Timothy Israel. Both mayors participate each year hoping their city will win, but have the ultimate goal to help support The Salvation Army’s mission to serve the community. The donations collected during the mayoral challenge stay local and go toward year-round programs that assist the citizens across Brazos County.
After counting what was raised in the kettles in addition to the online donations made in honor of both mayors, the totals of the 16th Annual Mayor Ring Off are in. Mayor Gutierrez of Bryan collected $6,264.24 while Mayor Nichols of College Station collected $2,244.04, making this year’s winner for the 15th year in a row the City of Bryan. For 2022, the mayors brought in a total of $8,508.28.
The Salvation Army of Bryan/College Station would like to thank everyone who participated at the kettle stands, behind the scenes, and those who contributed donations.
Donations to the Red Kettle Campaign can still be made at kettles near you around the area as well as online through December 24th.
Volunteers are still needed during that time as well.
Those interested can go to www.salvationarmybcs.org to donate or to sign up to volunteer.