Before millions worldwide associated the Red Kettle with America’s Team, one woman saw the value of that potential partnership: Charlotte Jones. Marking the 30^th anniversary of the National Red Kettle Kickoff, Charlotte Jones shared with The War Cry her reflections on the Dallas Cowboys’ remarkable generosity through The Salvation Army. She also described the importance of service with the Army to her family and her desire for that service to continue for generations to come.

The War Cry (WC): We are celebrating 30 years for The National Red Kettle Kickoff halftime show and the vital partnership between the Jones family, the Dallas Cowboys organization and The Salvation Army. What’s made this such a successful and lasting partnership? 

Jones: It’s hard to believe our partnership with The Salvation Army now spans three decades. What has made it last is that it was never just a halftime show. From the beginning, we saw that the Cowboys had a platform — one of the most-watched games of the NFL season, on Thanksgiving Day — and The Salvation Army had the people, the programs and the heart to meet needs in every community in America. Putting those two things together just made sense. Over the years we’ve developed such great respect for the depth of care The Salvation Army shows to those who need it most, and that trust has only grown. Every year we get to kick off the Red Kettle season in front of a national audience, and every year we’re humbled to know the impact that will follow in the lives of millions of people. That shared sense of purpose is what keeps it going.

WC: What originally drew your parents, Jerry and Gene Jones, and yourself to want to partner with The Salvation Army? 

Jones: In the mid-1990s, the team was coming off three Super Bowl wins but going through a really difficult, negative stretch off the field. We realized then that if people were going to be as interested in what we did off the field as they were interested in what we did on the field, then we could use that visibility and turn all that attention into something positive for our community. I had a meeting at Frito-Lay with Steve Reinemund, who was chairing The Salvation Army’s National Advisory Board, and that day my love for The Salvation Army was born and so was the idea to launch a national Red Kettle Campaign in the middle of our Dallas Cowboys game on national television. If there was one thing we had, it was visibility. I realized we could use that visibility and partner with a great entertainer to shine a spotlight on The Salvation Army and their mission. I flew to Nashville to get Reba McEntire on board, and my dad and I went to New York to pitch NBC. With the support of Dick Ebersol and his commitment to televise the halftime, the idea became not only a reality but a 30-year tradition to support The Salvation Army. For us, it fit exactly what we always believed: that we have a responsibility to use our greatest resource, our visibility, to help those who don’t have the strength, the resources or the means to help themselves.

WC: The Jones family continues to perpetuate the legacy of service with The Salvation Army. Your daughter, Haley Anderson, now serves on the National Advisory Board. How significant is it to you to see Haley carry on this beautiful legacy of service with The Salvation Army? How has partnering and volunteering with The Salvation Army become a cherished family tradition? 

Jones: It means the world to me. My cousin, Meredith Counce, has played an integral role in not only our Red Kettle Kickoff but also serving on the National Advisory Board and starting Echelon. And Haley was just a baby when our family first started working with The Salvation Army, so she has literally grown up around this partnership — from going suite to suite with her grandmother asking for donations to serving meals, picking out Angel Tree gifts and now being at the epicenter of the Thanksgiving Kick Off and our spokesperson for National Giving Day in New York with the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. My parents served on the National Advisory Board, I had the honor of chairing the NAOC and serving as the first female chair of the NAB, and now to see Haley take her own seat at that table is incredibly special. She’s not just carrying on a name; she’s been in the middle of the work, helping produce the Red Kettle Kickoff, serving on local boards and hosting fundraisers for Echelon. For our family, the holidays and The Salvation Army are inseparable. Every year, the week before Thanksgiving, my mother and I lead our players, their families, our cheerleaders and Rowdy in serving an early Thanksgiving meal to families The Salvation Army is helping. Then comes the Kickoff, National Giving Day in New York, the bell ringing and Angel Tree. It’s how we celebrate the season together, and it’s something I hope continues for generations.

WC: As you consider the tremendous impact of your family’s remarkable generosity, is there any anecdote or program that stands out for you — one that illustrates the impact you’ve seen the Cowboys’ partnership make, whether in the North Texas Area Command or beyond? 

Jones: There are so many, but a couple really stand out. One is the moment in 2016 when Ezekiel Elliott jumped into the giant Red Kettle in the end zone after a touchdown. It wasn’t planned, and it sparked over $250,000 in donations — most of them in $21 increments to match his jersey number. A couple of years later, Zeke and Dak Prescott both got into the kettle and matched $21 gifts. That showed us how our players and fans could make giving fun and personal. Closer to home, I think of the Gene and Jerry Jones Family North Texas Youth Education Town at The Salvation Army in Arlington, a legacy project from Super Bowl XLV. But nothing tops the national launch of the Red Kettle Campaign, live on national television in the middle of the Dallas Cowboys game on Thanksgiving Day, with an audience of 57 million viewers that sets the stage of inspiring the nation to support The Salvation Army for the holiday season. That impact has raised over $3 billion for The Salvation Army across the country the past 30 years. It doesn’t getter better than that!

WC: How has this partnership with The Salvation Army affected the culture of the Cowboys’ organization?

Jones: It has become part of who we are. It truly is the ethos of the Dallas Cowboys organization. We believe that it is a true privilege to work, coach and play for the Dallas Cowboys. And with that privilege comes a responsibility to use the visibility that surrounds us and the magic it creates, to shine that light onto The Salvation Army to inspire others to give and to join their effort to make a lasting impact on our community. Our partnership gives everyone in our organization a way to do that. Our employees, players, cheerleaders and alumni show up every year, year-round, to serve food, ring bells, adopt angels — to make an impact. And we don’t stop there. Our gameday 50/50 raffle supports The Salvation Army’s North Texas Area Command, and our partners like UnitedHealthcare, Reliant and Whataburger have joined us too. When you see a rookie serving a Thanksgiving plate or a veteran player scoring touchdowns to raise money for Salvation Army youth, you realize service isn’t a side project for us. It’s part of the culture of being a Dallas Cowboy.

WC: What are your hopes for the future of The Salvation Army’s work and partnership with the Dallas Cowboys?

Jones: Our vision is that the next 30 years will be even bigger than the first. We are excited about how we plan to do that locally and nationally. The needs haven’t gone away — so many families are facing real challenges — and The Salvation Army is there for them in every zip code in America. Our job is to keep finding new ways to use our platform to shine a light on that work, reaching new generations of fans and new ways to give with their time and their treasure. I hope the Red Kettle Kickoff keeps reminding people that small acts of generosity can make a big difference. Every generation of our family will keep showing up — standing alongside The Salvation Army officers, soldiers and volunteers who continue to do this work every single day to meet human needs in God’s name.

Photos courtesy: Dallas Cowboys