Pahrump Valley High School students bring on the positive holiday spirit on Monday nights. Students volunteer to take part in the Salvation Army bell ringing fundraisers. PVHS students have participated in this for many years now. 

The fundraiser was for a good cause, which everyone who volunteered helped raise a lot of money. Throughout the night, there were a lot of good vibes with almost everyone we encountered and it was fun seeing people with big bright smiling faces. The other bell ringer volunteers also had a great time even if they had to stand outside in the cold for 2 hours, which they didn’t mind doing. 

Throughout this year bell ringing, the Pahrump Valley Journalism students, Mary Vithoulkas, Daina Hernandez, Benjamin Lara, Bryan Meeks and Skyler Dunn will tell their joy and experience as being part of something that will help hundreds of people, with the help of Salvation Army. These are their time as the Bell Ringers of Christmas.

Mary V.: I’m very thankful to say that I was able to be a volunteer for the Salvation Army this year. My experience was very fun and although I was freezing, I was able to get past the cold to enjoy my time with my partners. This wasn’t my first time volunteering but it was definitely the most fun volunteer work I’ve ever done. There were a few people who didn’t like us saying Merry Christmas because they thought it wasn’t inclusive for the people who don’t celebrate Christmas, but the people who were happy to hear us say Merry Christmas outweighed the others. Dancing to Christmas music, being able to see how much joy we brought to people passing by, and spending quality time with my partners really helped me get into the Christmas spirit and hopefully it helped my partners do the same.

Daina H.: During the bell ringing volunteer fundraiser it felt good saying Merry Christmas to everyone, especially if they didn’t get to say Merry Christmas to their family members and visit them. It felt as if people were glad that we were there to say Merry Christmas, especially during this time of year. Some people might feel lonely during this time and we just want to bring some joy to people. I enjoyed seeing smiles on people’s faces when they would pass by us. I liked how everyone had a positive attitude around us and that there was no negativity. Since I had bell ringer friends, it made it more fun and enjoyable. We talked, danced, and listened to music so that it was pleasant.  

Ben L.: When I was volunteering for bell ringing it was quite interesting. At first ringing the bell was boring, but when I started to interact with people it became fun. I was occupied by Kristie and our watcher Manny. There were a lot of people who donated, I would say one in every four people it seemed like. Personally, the two hours I volunteered went by quite quickly. I recommend that anyone who wants to get some stuff on their resume, does bell ringing . The location is safe and no one is ever by themselves.

Bryan M.: A feeling of uneasiness came over me as I was completing the Google Form for the bell ringing volunteer work. Little did I know I had an enjoyable experience. Smiles to be had and bells to be rung, the atmosphere was a very pleasant one. Going into this with confidence, I had a blast, I would definitely recommend participating in bell ringing if you have not already.  

Skyler D.: As informative as it gets, my first and only experience was over the top. Truthfully, when arriving, I was worried about my time being there, since beforehand I was not in the mood to sit around for two hours in the cold, ringing a bell. However, with the help of others, we slowly warmed up and began doing small activities while giving people the joy of Christmas. When we began to play music and danced, a elderly woman came, and asked me if I was part of the Salvation Army. I was hesitant, but I told her that I was part of the high school Journalism class. She just smiled and said that she’ll give me a good review from how good I danced at the front of Walmart. I was given a chance to be part of a change that can alter not like hundreds of people in our community, but maybe a couple of people so that they can have something great.

With everyone that was part of this article, and everyone who were out in the cold ringing the bell and collecting money for the good cause, all of our intentions was to give back to the community and shine some light in faith to help the people in need. We, the Pahrump Valley High School Journalism class of 2020, would also want to thank the Salvation Army itself to allow us the opportunity to be part of something that makes the holidays feel better. Even to the people who were there as supervisors, we are glad to have them there to help make us feel heartwarmed and glad to be there.