What’s New
by Robert Mitchell
Charles Moore and his family used to be able to afford housing, but their life changed when his wife, Tiara, suffered a devastating stroke and couldn’t return to work. All the family had to live on was his modest disability check each month. “That’s how we ended up homeless,” Charles says.
by Robert Mitchell
The first time she walked into the building, she wasn’t a Salvation Army officer or even a Christian. She’d been invited by Jean Sainteme, who attended church there and had chosen this as the location for the couple’s first date. “My mother was impressed because he did not invite me to a club or to party or to drink. He invited me to church
by Hugo Bravo
Distribution Day is the highlight of the year for The Salvation Army in Syracuse. That day, families who have signed up through the Army and met income requirements visit the Syracuse Oncenter Convention Center and receive a donation of toys for their children and food for their home, meeting with an assistant to guide them in making selections.
by Warren L. Maye
Her most recent book is Gimme Some Sugar: 90 Devotions to Sweeten Your Day in a Godly Way. Kozar’s family was always warm and affectionate, and in a brief introduction, she highlights the importance of expressing care for the ones you love—without prompting.
by Robert Mitchell
Christian recording artist Lauren Daigle performed the Christmas songs in a New York City subway station last December with members of the New York Staff Band while two Salvation Army officers—Captain Clifford Douglas and Envoy LeNissa Sukhdeo—rang the bells.
by Hugo Bravo
Captain Stanley Pierre-Louis, corps officer at the Jamaica Citadel Corps in New York, talks about his early goal of serving in the Haitian military, the importance of self-care as a pastor, and seeing the work of the Salvation Army “Slum Sisters” through his wife, Captain Ermance Pierre-Louis.
by Hugo Bravo
When Mary and her husband, Chris Howland, successful entrepreneurs, looked to financially support organizations that help others, they approached The Salvation Army first. Upon their retirement in 2018, the Howlands moved from Connecticut to Newport, R.I., and became directly involved as volunteers at The Salvation Army Newport Corps. Chris is also chairperson of The Salvation Army’s Rhode Island advisory board, and Mary is chair of the Newport Corps advisory council.
by Robert Mitchell
The Salvation Army’s music and arts programs help children (and even some adults) find a place to belong and use their talents to bring glory to God.
by Guest
In case you haven’t heard, Christmas is coming. We all love Christmas. The story is one we know so well, whether we hear about it sitting in the pew on a Sunday morning or listening to Linus in the classic A Charlie Brown Christmas. Could it be possible to know it too well?
by Guest
For many years, the General of The Salvation Army has recorded a Christmas message. Thanks to the internet, nearly every Salvationist around the world can now hear those words of hope. Some of our great pioneers also shared their thoughts about Christmas, and we’re sharing them again here.
by Robert Mitchell
Keith Bryant Sr. is known as the singing Salvation Army bell ringer outside the Roche Bros. Supermarket in Westborough, Mass. A Worcester resident, the 60-year-old Bryant has been ringing the bell for 24 years now and mixes in Christmas classics and oldies for his shoppers.
by Guest
The world can be a noisy place. There’s always something going on, making the next sound, grabbing our attention. Street noise. Or the kids are talking, or the TV is on. How about those fancy rectangles in our pockets that help us make phone calls, surf the web, check social media, and play games? Noise happens all the time. Do you sleep at night with the TV on or music playing? We’ve gotten so used to the noise that we can’t even reach a restful state without it.
by Guest
One of the main expectations any charitable organization must live up to is transparency—to be an “open book” to the public to ensure that it’s worthy of being trusted. When that organization is also a religious movement modeled after the gospel of Jesus Christ, gaining and keeping the public’s trust becomes even more important.
by Hugo Bravo
Give people a chance to express themselves through the arts, and they can blossom—and even grow into something beyond their imagination. When The Salvation Army in Delaware saw an opportunity to encourage members of its Developmental Disabilities Program (DDP) to explore their talents, a new ministry of art and enterprise emerged.
by Hugo Bravo
Sometimes when I sit down to write about immigrants and their connection to The Salvation Army, my mind goes back to April 10, 1988. That was the day my mother and I boarded a plane from Lima, Peru, to Newark International Airport. I was 5 years old. My father, who’d arrived in the United States two years prior, had a rented rear-lot house ready for us in Paterson, N.J., a city that, its residents like to say, has more Peruvians than any other place in the world, minus Peru itself.
by Robert Mitchell
Charles Moore and his family used to be able to afford housing, but their life changed when his wife, Tiara, suffered a devastating stroke and couldn’t return to work. All the family had to live on was his modest disability check each month. “That’s how we ended up homeless,” Charles says.
by Robert Mitchell
The first time she walked into the building, she wasn’t a Salvation Army officer or even a Christian. She’d been invited by Jean Sainteme, who attended church there and had chosen this as the location for the couple’s first date. “My mother was impressed because he did not invite me to a club or to party or to drink. He invited me to church
by Hugo Bravo
Distribution Day is the highlight of the year for The Salvation Army in Syracuse. That day, families who have signed up through the Army and met income requirements visit the Syracuse Oncenter Convention Center and receive a donation of toys for their children and food for their home, meeting with an assistant to guide them in making selections.
by Warren L. Maye
Her most recent book is Gimme Some Sugar: 90 Devotions to Sweeten Your Day in a Godly Way. Kozar’s family was always warm and affectionate, and in a brief introduction, she highlights the importance of expressing care for the ones you love—without prompting.
by Robert Mitchell
Christian recording artist Lauren Daigle performed the Christmas songs in a New York City subway station last December with members of the New York Staff Band while two Salvation Army officers—Captain Clifford Douglas and Envoy LeNissa Sukhdeo—rang the bells.
by Hugo Bravo
Captain Stanley Pierre-Louis, corps officer at the Jamaica Citadel Corps in New York, talks about his early goal of serving in the Haitian military, the importance of self-care as a pastor, and seeing the work of the Salvation Army “Slum Sisters” through his wife, Captain Ermance Pierre-Louis.
by Hugo Bravo
When Mary and her husband, Chris Howland, successful entrepreneurs, looked to financially support organizations that help others, they approached The Salvation Army first. Upon their retirement in 2018, the Howlands moved from Connecticut to Newport, R.I., and became directly involved as volunteers at The Salvation Army Newport Corps. Chris is also chairperson of The Salvation Army’s Rhode Island advisory board, and Mary is chair of the Newport Corps advisory council.
by Robert Mitchell
The Salvation Army’s music and arts programs help children (and even some adults) find a place to belong and use their talents to bring glory to God.
by Guest
In case you haven’t heard, Christmas is coming. We all love Christmas. The story is one we know so well, whether we hear about it sitting in the pew on a Sunday morning or listening to Linus in the classic A Charlie Brown Christmas. Could it be possible to know it too well?
by Guest
For many years, the General of The Salvation Army has recorded a Christmas message. Thanks to the internet, nearly every Salvationist around the world can now hear those words of hope. Some of our great pioneers also shared their thoughts about Christmas, and we’re sharing them again here.
by Robert Mitchell
Keith Bryant Sr. is known as the singing Salvation Army bell ringer outside the Roche Bros. Supermarket in Westborough, Mass. A Worcester resident, the 60-year-old Bryant has been ringing the bell for 24 years now and mixes in Christmas classics and oldies for his shoppers.
by Guest
The world can be a noisy place. There’s always something going on, making the next sound, grabbing our attention. Street noise. Or the kids are talking, or the TV is on. How about those fancy rectangles in our pockets that help us make phone calls, surf the web, check social media, and play games? Noise happens all the time. Do you sleep at night with the TV on or music playing? We’ve gotten so used to the noise that we can’t even reach a restful state without it.
by Guest
One of the main expectations any charitable organization must live up to is transparency—to be an “open book” to the public to ensure that it’s worthy of being trusted. When that organization is also a religious movement modeled after the gospel of Jesus Christ, gaining and keeping the public’s trust becomes even more important.
by Hugo Bravo
Give people a chance to express themselves through the arts, and they can blossom—and even grow into something beyond their imagination. When The Salvation Army in Delaware saw an opportunity to encourage members of its Developmental Disabilities Program (DDP) to explore their talents, a new ministry of art and enterprise emerged.
by Hugo Bravo
Sometimes when I sit down to write about immigrants and their connection to The Salvation Army, my mind goes back to April 10, 1988. That was the day my mother and I boarded a plane from Lima, Peru, to Newark International Airport. I was 5 years old. My father, who’d arrived in the United States two years prior, had a rented rear-lot house ready for us in Paterson, N.J., a city that, its residents like to say, has more Peruvians than any other place in the world, minus Peru itself.
by Hugo Bravo
The Boston Celtics were in the middle of what would turn out to be their 18th championship season when the organization came together with Dunkin’ to unveil a renovated basketball court at The Salvation Army South End Corps in March. The two Boston-based entities, which have a history of working with The Salvation Army in Massachusetts, collaborated on the project.
by Guest
In the Gospel of Mark, the Lord encounters a man possessed by a legion of demons. The story left me with mixed emotions. This man’s inability to be free of such spirits filled me with sadness and regret.
by Hugo Bravo
Major Valerie Kahn, program secretary for The Salvation Army Massachusetts Divisional Headquarters, talks about how the Army’s work in Jamaica helped direct her future, being reminded of the first time she met her husband, and following God’s guidance.
by Hugo Bravo
Pornography is all too easy to access. Our cellphones, with apps and web browsers, slip into our pockets or purses, ever at hand, while our internet-connected tablets and personal computers wait for us at home. These devices can retrieve online pornography in seconds, creating powerful temptation and a dangerous outlet.
by Hugo Bravo
On Sunday mornings, as the corps officers work behind the scenes preparing for the service, the first Salvation Army representative to greet the congregation is often the welcome sergeant. It’s an appointment given to soldiers in corps both large and small. At The Salvation Army Kroc Center of Philadelphia, Alice Webb fills that role.
by Robert Mitchell
Walt Kehoe once struggled with drugs and alcohol, but now he keeps himself so busy serving, he doesn’t think about his past.
by Hugo Bravo
The Salvation Army’s LIGHT Project reminds people caught up in human trafficking that recovery is not something they have to face alone.
VOL. 10 NO. 6 2024
VOL. 10 NO. 6 2024
Among many other engaging topics, this issue of SAconnects magazine explores The Salvation Army’s wealth of creative arts programs that help people expand their mental, emotional, and spiritual capacity to love themselves and others. You’ll see how music, drama, and dance foster a warm sense of belonging. When done to the glory of God, those creative expressions also deepen one’s faith and joy in the Lord.
