NATIONAL DING-A-LING DAY

National Ding-a-Ling Day on December 12th encourages us to reconnect with people we once talked to often.

Ding-a-Lings on this day call the people they haven’t heard from in a while. It may be an old classmate, co-worker, or neighbor from years ago. Or perhaps a call will go out to the child who used to mow the grass during the summer. How about that couple who carpooled for soccer? What was their name? Many people slip out of our lives who would love to hear the ding-a-ling of a call from you. Why don’t you join the Ding-a-ling club and call someone this year?

HOW TO OBSERVE #DingALingDay

Call someone you haven’t heard from in a long time and use #DingALingDay to post on social media.

NATIONAL DING-A-LING DAY HISTORY

In 1972, Franky Hyle placed a free ad in Chase’s Calendar of Events with his PO Box Number in Melrose Park, IL stating that for $1 you can join the National Ding-A-Ling club. The club, with 871 original members, would call friends and relatives they haven’t heard from in a while every year on December 12. In a 1975 Lakeland Ledger article, the idea for the club developed during a discussion among friends about people being friendlier and led to the meaning of the term ding-a-ling. After looking up the word, they found it meant “One who hears bells in his head.”

From this evening discussion, Hyle created the National Ding-A-Ling club. The tradition grew, and on December 12th, millions of people will call those individuals dear to them.

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