POULSBO — All of the donations collected during the Bellringer fund during its annual campaign are waiting to be used to help those in need in the North End.

With this year’s Bellringer campaign well on its way to surpassing its $30,000 goal, and with the holidays here, it seemed like the perfect time to reflect on the program’s history and pay tribute to its matron saint, Mabel Raab.

Mabel and her husband Frank were well-known for civic contributions throughout their lives with Frank serving as Poulsbo’s mayor from 1960 to 1968.

Now, at age 94, Mabel still resides in the area and contributes to the fund that she helped bring to life.

However, she doesn’t seek the limelight or choose to take credit for the program, that has aided North End families for more than 60 years.

“Mabel wanted me to say it was a group of people that started it,” said Raab family spokesman Roger Sherrard.

That group saw a need in the community, and The Project specifically, Sherrard said.

The Project was housing built by U.S. Department of Defense to provide homes for military personnel and civilian workers at the Keyport Torpedo Base on Front Street and Jensen Way. The dilapidated homes were razed in 1999 to make way for Poulsbo Place I and Poulsbo Place II.

“They saw that some families couldn’t have a Christmas, and they got together and did something about it,” Sherrard said.

That group’s efforts were continued by the Poulsbo Noon Lions Club, which began the Bellringer campaign in 1951. Frank Raab was among the charter members of the club.

Even though the Bremerton Sun has its own Bellringer campaign, Sherrard said the North End’s has been around far longer.

By Christmas Eve 1952, in the fund’s second year, donations from the community totaled a whopping $162.50, but now more than 50 years later, it is nearing the $30,000 mark.

In 1952, eggs were 45 cents a dozen, butter was a mere 75 cents per pound and sugar was only a dime per pound. Gas prices hadn’t dreamed of exceeding the 50 cents per gallon plateau.

But as the need has grown, Bellringer and the Raab Foundation have also expanded with the times, ensuring as many families in need receive assistance not only during the holidays, but throughout the entire year.

For Bellringer volunteer John Macdonald, the program is a tribute to the Raabs and those other community members who saw a need and decided to do something about it.

“Once they lit the torch, the Lions Club took it on as a service project and ran with it,” Macdonald said.

Many of the Lions had been involved with the effort before the club took it on, because Frank Raab was one of the club’s charter members, he said.

Through the years, the fund has had its share of feast and famine, but having it on the front page of the North Kitsap Herald has made a positive impact, he said.