After a full day of ringing bells on Thursday for the Salvation Army’s red-kettle campaign, it was the city of Columbia Falls that came out on top in a friendly competition among six communities in the Flathead Valley.

Columbia Falls raised $1,909.11 during the first annual competitive “Ring Day,” but Evergreen wasn’t far behind. Evergreen Chamber of Commerce volunteers collected $1,724.20.

All totaled, the communities raised $6,992.94 during the six-hour bell-ringing blitz.

“The enthusiasm from each of the six communities was beyond our expectation,” Salvation Army Director of Development Bob Blake said. “This is a 423 percent increase over what we would expect from these sites on a normal day.”

Each community stationed volunteer ringers at local grocery stores.

The Bigfork Chamber of Commerce came in third with $1,473.19 collected at Harvest Foods.

In fourth place was the city of Whitefish, with $801.62.

The city of Kalispell raised $708.11 and the Lakeside Chamber of Commerce brought in $376.71.

The Salvation Army uses the kettle collections to provide a variety of services to those who need food, clothing and emergency assistance. Its mission is to meet human needs without discrimination.