Riley O’Neal grasped the bell in her hand, ringing vigorously while flashing her prettiest Christmas smile at passers-by.

The unofficial youngest member of the Washington Kiwanis Club, she was spending part of her Saturday morning helping others by taking part in a long standing holiday tradition, that of ringing the bell for the Salvation Army Christmas kettle fundraising campaign.

“We ring the bell to help people,” said Riley, a Washington Montessori Public Charter School kindergarten student who turns 6 years old in a few days. “I like ringing it.”

The daughter of Kiwanis president Stuart O’Neal, she joined her dad at the kettle outside Wal-Mart in Washington for a second year.

“It’s something we want to do, like, forever,” said the elder O’Neal. “She’s quite the fundraiser.”

Manning the Salvation Army kettle, a tradition that began in 1891, goes hand in hand with the Kiwanis Club’s community outreach mission.

“It’s one way of offering some community service … it’s our way of helping people who can’t help themselves,” O’Neal said. “It’s another way to give back.”

O’Neal also uses the experience to teach his daughter the importance of helping others who are less fortunate.

“Riley knows we want to do all we can to help people,” he said. “Nearly everyone digs deep to put something in the kettle.”

Members of the local Kiwanis Club typically sign up to man the kettle one Saturday near Christmas, according to O’Neal. More than a dozen members took shifts this weekend. He said he is hoping to build club membership in the coming year and hopefully sign up for additional kettle hours next Christmas.

The club meets each Tuesday at noon at King Chicken in Washington. Current members range in age from 30s to 80s.

“But I’d be happy to have members in their 20s if they’re interested,” O’Neal said.

And while the club is male-only at this time, female members are always welcome.

“We’re open to pretty much everybody who wants to serve the community,” he said.

*For more information about becoming a member of the Washington Kiwanis Club, contact O’Neal at stuart.oneal@edwardjones.com.