Quick, $25,000 in small change is spread out all over the Miss-Lou, there for the taking. Who will take it?

Though it may sound too good to be true, it’s not, at least for area non-profit agencies.

When the Salvation Army closed its Natchez doors a few weeks ago the news was 99 percent bad. But to all the glass-half-full fundraisers in the community, a kernel of good news came be found in the closure — money for you is available.

The period between Thanksgiving and Christmas was prime fundraising time for the Salvation Army and most other non-profits.

The chill in the air, the eggnog in bellies and the heart-wrenching thought that some child might have a bad Christmas are enough to pull a few nickels out of every scrooge.

And the Salvation Army is one of only a few worldwide charities to capitalize on that fact.

Each holiday season, Army bell ringers around the country set up outside the places you don’t go if you don’t have money — stores.

A bright-red kettle and a nearly deafening bell attract enough attention from all those shoppers who do, obviously, have some amount money.

Maybe it’s a handful of pennies from the bottom of some mom’s purse. Maybe a young boy tosses in a few quarters. And every once in a while, a passing shopper crams in a $20 bill.

Soon, it adds up.

Last year all those pennies, quarters and 20s totaled something around $25,000 for the local chapter.

I’ve seen no bell ringers this year, nor has any non-profit asked me to signup and ring.

I guess that $25,000 is still just lying around town, there for the taking.

I’m quite sure the Salvation Army doesn’t own the rights to bell ringing. Nothing can stop a motivated group of volunteers from grabbing a bucket, bell and sign and standing outside area businesses to raise money for another legitimate, local non-profit.

Let’s ring the bells for Catholic Charities, the Sunshine Shelter or the Humane Society.

Or, let’s ring for the United Way, which will in turn handle divvying the funds among worthy charities.

For more than a week now, our newspaper has been publishing a series of stories — Season of Wishes — highlighting the needs of local non-profits.

We’ve yet to call an agency and hear, “Oh, we don’t need anything.”

The need is there. The money is there.

Let’s get together, figure out the logistics and start ringing.

If a legitimate local non-profit wants to organize a new bell-ringing campaign, or if a local church wants to do the legwork and donate the profits, let me know and we’ll help you publicize your efforts so the public will know whom to trust.

The Salvation Army created the image of a bell ringer, and for years we’ve all put money in the kettle without even questioning the identity of the person holding it.

The same can be done locally with a new beneficiary and a little bit of organization.

The $25,000 in donations from last year doesn’t need to go into one more video game for junior, a new TV for the family or an expensive meal for you.

Even despite tough economic times, so many of us have so much.

Yet some have so little.

Let’s find a way to begin picking up the change (and the $20s) to make a difference in the lives of our community members in need.

Julie Cooper is the managing editor of The Natchez Democrat. She can be reached at 601-445-3551 or julie.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.