For years, Salvation Army bell ringer Roger Paulhus was a fixture at Jewel-Osco at York Street and Butterfield Road in Elmhurst, and he made quite the impression on shoppers and employees alike.
“He was a symbol of Christmas. He was helping others,” said Kenlyn Geraldi, of Elmhurst. “He would be there on the coldest, nastiest days sitting in his chair. Later on I think he had a knee replacement so he had pain and he would still be sitting there ringing that bell, wrapped up in the blanket.”
She added that everyone thought of him as “kind of like Santa. He had a beard and the droll little mouth and the little red nose cuddled up in his blankets. … It was very sad that he passed away alone.”
The Downers Grove resident died in his apartment just one day after he called off from his usual shift because he wasn’t feeling well. On Dec. 23, he didn’t come to work and wasn’t responding to phone calls or texts, according to Cathleen Himes, resource development director for the Salvation Army Oakbrook Terrace.
“That was unusual both because he’s normally responsive and he rarely called off work,” she said. “We at the Salvation Army felt it important to check on him as he’s become a part of our family.”
Capt. Enrique Coreano, one of the site’s administrators and pastors, set up a wellness check with the local police department, and officers and Paulhus’ landlord discovered he had died in his apartment.
“Roger was a faithful, kind bell ringer who loyally showed up for his shifts day after day, year after year. He loved the community of Elmhurst where he rang and they loved him back,” Coreano shared. “His service meant so much to us at the Salvation Army Oakbrook Terrace – the funds he raised over the course of two decades helped tens of thousands of our neighbors in need. We are so grateful to Roger and his lasting legacy. He is forever a part of our Salvation Army OBT family.”
Geraldi said she heard from the Salvation Army people who took over his shift that “the highlight of his year was ringing the bell at the Jewel. He’d mark it off on his calendar six weeks before.”
She and other donors also helped the bell ringer at times. “Many of us thought he needed the donation and people would give him money or coffee or give him a gift card to McDonald’s or something,” she added. “It looked like he needed help but he was helping others. That was his mission.”
Geraldi said his name was mentioned in the prayers Dec. 28 at the church service at Yorkfield Presbyterian Church near the grocery store, which she attends. “There was kind of a gasp in the congregation. People texted my daughter and said ‘Is that really the guy?’”
In addition, on Christmas Eve, “everybody was coming up and putting extra in the kettle for Roger,” she added.
Her daughter, Laurel Geraldi, said he was “always there” when she shopped at Jewel, which is several times each week. “I’ve kind of grown up with him and always saw him in the exact same location every time I’d be there. He was like Santa. You’d see him and talk to him and he’d wave at you and smile and say Merry Christmas and always had a smile on his face.
“You might run into him inside if he was warming up, but he always acknowledged everyone. It wasn’t someone just sitting there doing his job,” she added.
She said she spoke with a woman from the Salvation Army who was there on Christmas Eve.
“I’d been there the day before and noticed the kettle was up by the wall, and then when I was there the next day, there was a woman there and that sign on the post,” Laurel Geraldi shared. “She said even employees from the Jewel were coming out and crying with her and talking about how they always remembered and saw him. … Literally almost every person who walked up from the parking lot or out the door was putting money in the kettle.”
Laurel Geraldi explained that the Salvation Army woman “wanted to make sure she finished the season for him” after learning Paulhus had died. “She had an empty chair by the kettle to represent him. As I was leaving Jewel on the 24th, her husband was there playing Christmas carols. … She said no one could ever take his spot. That was always Roger’s spot.”
She also talked about the bell ringer’s dedication. “It didn’t matter if it was 10 below 0 and snowing six inches. He would be there ringing his bell at the door. He was definitely, as my mom said, a symbol of Christmas and dedicated to that job. He was definitely looking down and watching all those people donating to others.”
Paulhus began working at the Elmhurst Jewel 15 years ago, ringing the Salvation Army’s red kettle bell as a paid worker from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. six days a week during the six-week campaign that ends on Christmas Eve. He had worked as a bell ringer elsewhere for at least five years.
Himes praised his efforts. “Roger raised the most money of any ringer each year and raised about $15,000 per year,” she said, attributing his success to his personality. “He was kind to customers. He cared about people. He was loyal and faithful, giving so much of his time as a worker of the campaign each year.”
This year, he had been ringing every day since Nov. 11, she said.
Although Paulhus didn’t work during the rest of the year because of a medical condition, he was a hard-working paid ringer for more than 20 years during the six-week campaign.
His efforts helped fund the Salvation Army Oakbrook Terrace, which serves surrounding suburbs in DuPage County, including Elmhurst, Lombard, Downers Grove, Villa Park and Oakbrook Terrace, Himes said. “We serve 25,000 neighbors in need each year, helping with food assistance, rent/mortgage and utility bill assistance, child care, back to school and holiday assistance for children, case management and more.”
Paid bell ringers work six to nine hours per shift, and volunteers work two to four hours per shift. Paid ringers fill out an application, go through hiring channels and complete training with human resources. The process takes about two weeks.
Bell ringers have only a few requirements, Himes explained: “Showing up to shifts on time and being dressed/prepared for the weather, having a smile and kind word/thank you for donors and passers-by, ringing the bell with the purpose of helping others.”
Paulhus was honored during the Salvation Army’s Jan. 4 Sunday service, and staff are working with his survivor brother to plan a celebration of life service in the spring, Himes shared.
Those who want to honor his legacy can still do so by donating to the Salvation Army’s virtual kettle fundraising site at https://donate.salarmyncil.org/campaign/the-salvation-army-oakbrook-terrace-virtual-red-kettle-2025/c710979.
Melinda Moore is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.