Don’t have change? You can still put money in the red kettle this holiday season

If you don’t want to give this year, you’ll need a better excuse than, “I’m sorry, but I don’t have any change on me.”

Beginning Nov. 8, the familiar Salvation Army red kettles in the city — and across the nation — will accept Apple Pay and Google Pay, offering a new way to donate on the spot, without actually dropping cash in the kettle.

“We acknowledge that we’ve got to get ahead of the technology curve on this because people are changing how they shop and how they pay for their shopping,” said Scott Justvig, a spokesman for the Salvation Army Chicago Metropolitan Division.

This year, the kettles come with a sticker that has a tiny microchip embedded, Justvig said. Tap an iPhone X, iPhone 11 or most Android phone against the sticker, and a page will appear on your phone offering options to donate. Would-be donors with older-model iPhones can use their camera to scan the sticker, which will also make the donation page appear.

As kettle donations have remained flat for the last few years, the Salvation Army has tried other ways to boost contributions, including using credit card readers on kettles.

“The problem with that is that the batteries would go dead in the Chicago cold,” Justvig said.

Justvig said the time was finally right to try the sticker.

“Part of the issue is making sure the security was there to handle this properly, and that it was simple ... and, frankly, so that volunteers and bell ringers don’t have to be IT experts to help someone make a contribution,” Justvig said.

The Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Campaign runs through Dec. 24. There will be about 1,100 kettles set up in the city and surrounding counties in Illinois and Indiana.