LEAVENWORTH, Kan. -- A con artist is trying to cash in on the holiday spirit, Salvation Army officials said.

A Leavenworth woman called the Salvation Army to ask whether a man who showed up at her door asking for a donation to the charity was really working for them.

"Well, he wasn't good looking. That's all I can say," said the victim, who asked only to be called Mrs. Browning. "He's not good looking if he's out stealing from people."

Browning said the man, peeking out of a parka, rang her doorbell Monday afternoon, holding something that looked like a red kettle.

"He said, 'We're collecting for the Salvation Army.' He said, 'They didn't get enough money, so we're going house to house to collect,'" said Browning.

She said she was suspicious, then sleepless as she thought about it and the state of the nation. "The country's in bad shape. Maybe they are doing that. And I said, 'I'm calling in the morning,'" Browning said.

Her suspicions were well-founded, Salvation Army officials said. Bell ringers outside stores are the only ones with the real red kettles, and the charity never does that kind of fundraising door-to-door.

Salvation Army Capt. Mark Nance said, "There are times in the year when we do go door to door." They collect food door-to-door on Halloween, for example. "But we do not go door-to-door for cash donations," Nance said.

Browning told the man who came to her door that she'd already given, which she had. "I always give them a little bit. I figure it all helps," she said.

Browning said she wanted to let others know about the scam. "I hope he didn't get a lot of money from a lot of people. Some people don't call in. They're scared to. But I'm not scared. I'm going to call in when someone is doing that because I may be helping some other people," she said.

Salvation Army officials said Browning is the second person to call about the man, who she said had a grade-school-age child with him.

The Salvation Army reported the scam to the Leavenworth police.