Ringing in Christmas: Cindy Pelletier

by Robert Mitchell 

Cynthia “Cindy” Pelletier was given a crash course in bell ringing when she showed up 53 years ago to stand kettles for The Salvation Army in Burlington, Mass.

“All I was looking for was a job,” Pelletier recalled. “The captain gave me a bell and told me to go over to that kettle. I went over to it, and he said, ‘Ring the bell. Make noise.’ So, I made noise,” she said with a laugh.

“I rang the bell and people started putting money in the kettle. I was happy to see that, and I knew right there that’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to do something to help people.”

The year was 1972 and Pelletier, then just 16, rang her first bell inside the Burlington Mall. She hasn’t stopped since.

“I can’t believe I still do this,” Pelletier said. “I like the job. Something draws me to it. I like meeting people. I know more people now than I ever did.”

Pelletier, who stands kettles for the Waltham, Mass., Corps, likes to reminisce about the different Salvation Army officers and community leaders she has met over the years at the kettle kickoffs. The Salvation Army’s Massachusetts Division, and even the Massachusetts State Senate, has honored her for her long tenure.

“That’s a milestone,” she said of her 53 years. “That’s a long time. People ask me if I can hear the bell. Yes, I do. I hear it in my sleep. Sometimes when I’m in a room that’s quiet, I’ll hear the bell. It’s like the bell follows me.

“What I like about bell ringing is the sound the bell makes and the attraction of bringing people to the kettle. Some people just run away from it, and some come to it.”

Out in the cold

Over five decades, Pelletier has stood next to the Iconic red kettle at malls, grocery stores, and even liquor stores. Despite the sometimes brutally cold New England winters, she actually prefers to be outside. She also likes standing rather than sitting.

“You get to meet a lot more people being outside for some reason,” she explained. “It’s not crowded like it is inside. If you’re outside, you can see different people come and go. I just like to be outside.”

Pelletier, who puts in six days and 40 hours a week at the kettle while also working at a local supermarket, is a rock of faithfulness. How does she mentally get through those long shifts? She takes 15-minute breaks and concentrates on the assignment at hand — and why she is there.

“I don’t let people bother me,” she said. “If they say they don’t have any money or they’ll give tomorrow, I don’t let that bother me. I say, ‘OK, thank you. Don’t worry about it. I’ll catch you next time.’ I’m very polite about it. I do what I can, and I keep myself calm. That’s how I get through it.”

She also passes the time by listening to the music being played over the public address system at her kettle location, and “I try to ring the bell to the music.”

How she prepares

A veteran of many frigid winters, Pelletier is a pro at preparation. She gets up early, checks the weather forecast, and drinks maybe five cups of coffee before her shift. She wears a fleece hat and several sweaters at the kettle, while also employing hand and foot warmers.

“I get all bundled up in three or four layers up and three or four layers down,” she said. “In the real cold, I find something thicker than that and put that on.”

The bell ringers who fail to prepare usually don’t last long, Pelletier said. She remembers one who got overcome by the cold and left without telling anyone.

When her shift is over each day, Pelletier doesn’t just go home and collapse.

“I’m not tired,” she said. “Sometimes I’ll go get something to eat and I’ll stay up for a while. I’m an active person. My age has nothing to do with it.”

A heart for others

Pelletier loves seeing the fruits of her labor: toys packed up for Christmas distribution, stuffed food boxes at the corps, someone who kept their electricity on thanks to The Salvation Army.

“It brings me joy that I can help somebody out there who needs it,” she said. “Sometimes you sit back, and you say, ‘Wow, we did this?’ It makes you feel good. It’s rewarding to know you did something good for somebody.”

Pelletier, who worships at The Salvation Army in Waltham when she goes to church, said her faith is a major motivator for her. She also helps raise money for the Boston Children’s Hospital through her second job at Shaw’s, a grocery store in Waltham.

“I do believe you do what you can to help people,” she said. “It’s a good feeling you get inside that you did something. I can’t explain it.”

Captain Justin Barter said when he and his wife, Captain Marsha Barter, were announced as the new corps officers in Waltham this year, Pelletier reached out to say she was a bell ringer and looked forward to serving again.

“She just loves being a bell ringer so much,” Captain Justin said. “She describes it as one of the biggest parts of her life.”

He said Pelletier is cognizant of why she rings and often asks how the Christmas toy campaign is going.

“She has it in her heart that she’s doing this for the kids and the community,” he said. “She’s absolutely fantastic.”

Pelletier, who is single and will turn 70 next year, has no plans to take a step back.

“If God’s willing, I’ll keep going out and doing what I love to do, but if it doesn’t feel right, I’ll just back away from it at some point,” she said. “Right now, it feels right.

“I’m happy to get up and get out and do something with people. I love my job and what I’m doing. I wouldn’t trade The Salvation Army for anything.”