Watching the Dallas Cowboys play on Thanksgiving Day has been a tradition since 1966. Since 1997, the Dallas Cowboys and the Salvation Army have partnered to kick off the nonprofit's annual Red Kettle Campaign. It's raised more than $3 billion in its 27-year history.
The halftime show puts a national spotlight on the increasing needs of millions of families living in the United States during the holiday season.
Credit for the groundbreaking approach for fundraising goes to Charlotte Jones, Chief Brand Offcer and co-owner of the Dallas Cowboys. From Reba McEntire to Destiny's Child to Dolly Parton, Jones has invited some of the biggest names in music to perform at halftime.
This year, it's country music superstar and reigning CMA and ACM Entertainer of the Year Lainey Wilson going from bell bottoms to bell ringing.
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"I'm so excited and honored. just very thankful, tis the season," Wilson told NBC5. "This is a big moment for me and my crew and especially to be teamed up with the Cowboys and Salvation Army. It's truly an honor."
"She is one of the best performers that I have ever seen live and in person, and probably even more important than that, she has such a beautiful heart. And I think this performance on Thanksgiving is about both. It's about huge entertainment. It's about excitement. It's about a huge audience but it's about capturing that audience and giving them heart so that they feel the passion and the cause and the purpose of why we are doing this, and that's for the Salvation Army and inspire people to give," Jones said.
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"Being able to team up with these guys this year, it's truly it's like icing on the cake for an incredible year, and being able to share my gift with the world on a huge platform is such a blessing," said Wilson who is considered one of the greatest songwriters of her generation. "My dreams are coming true and they continue to come true and you just never know what's right around the corner."
Money raised through the Red Kettle Campaign stays in the communities where donors live. With five fewer giving days this season, the nonprofit needs volunteers to be bell ringers and shoppers willing to adopt an angel from the Salvation Army Angel Trees throughout North Texas.
This year, there are a record number of more than 41,000 angels available to adopt including children, seniors, and adults with special needs. You can adopt an angel here.
