by Hugo Bravo

Beat the heat and make healthy habits part of your summer routine with these 10 tips.

by Warren L. Maye

By becoming a foster parent, you can change a child’s life. By adopting that child, you can change your whole life too, like the author of Broken Pieces: Mending the Fragments Through Adoption, which gave me chills and provoked tears of pain and joy.

by Hugo Bravo

“We’ve thought about turning the Fabric Fair into a whole weekend event, or maybe charging a fee to have early access to our products,” says Deborah Kazar. “But that would require our volunteers to be here an extra day or two. These are women in their 70s and 80s, and they’re already working hard year-round to make that one day of the fair into a big success.” 

by Robert Mitchell

The mere mention of artificial intelligence, or AI, conjures up images of a high-tech, dystopian time when machines mimic humanity and take over the world, but the truth is, many elements of AI have been around for a while.

by Warren L. Maye

In Pennsylvania alone, as many as 3,000 young people live in foster care holding centers designed for 48-hour stays. Now more than ever, families are needed nationwide to provide hundreds of thousands of children with loving foster homes, and maybe even adoption.

by Guest

A familiar feeling comes over me as I remember the sounds of a tinkling piano, the sight of sneakers and a cozy cardigan, and the familiar warm face of a friend singing, “What do you do with the mad that you feel?” My friendly neighbor on the TV, Mister Rogers, talks about how toys don’t have feelings, but people do. 

by Robert Mitchell

“Christ is everything to me,” Mark says. “He’s my Siri, He’s my Google, and my GPS through life. I lived my life in [spiritual] darkness and in dark places. Now I choose to live my life in the light of God’s grace.

by Guest

Salvationists have served through wars and conflicts, and their stories are important to tell, particularly for those of us who’ve only known stability.

by Hugo Bravo

During the worst flooding disaster Vermont had seen in decades, pastors Keith and Katherine Jache led recovery efforts in the name of God and The Salvation Army. “When you arrive at your new assignment, there are certain people you should seek out and get to know immediately. Of course, people like the mayor are impor­tant but also town management workers like the local fire chief. In a disaster situation, that’s the person who is going to be in charge,” says Major Keith.

by Hugo Bravo

The men at Muskingum County Jail in Zanesville, Ohio, were at Bible study. Two participants whispered, as if each was trying to convince the other to speak up. They had just listened to Salvation Army Envoy George Bates and ministry assistant Seth Hall talk about the Book of Exodus, and how God told Moses that He would be with him as Moses set up his tent outside of the Israelite camp, where Moses could work and settle disputes. 

by Hugo Bravo

Captain Kendall Stout, corps officer of The Salvation Army Lock Haven Corps in eastern Pennsylvania, talks about Bible sword drills, welcoming people who are homeless to the church, and how becoming a married partner in ministry will change the way she serves.

by Hugo Bravo

If someone’s heartbeat suddenly stops, it means they have gone into cardiac arrest. Their heart is unable to pump oxygen-rich blood to their body’s vital organs. Without oxygen, an organ like the brain can suffer irreversible damage, even in a matter of minutes. To prevent this from happening, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), a hands-on procedure anyone can learn, helps the blood travel through the body until expert medical personnel can restore the heart’s ability to pump blood.

by Guest

At the beginning of 2023, my family had to say goodbye to our beloved dog, Chewie. We were filled with sadness and tears but also relief that she would be free of her painful illness. She had been suffering from oral cancer, and we knew the right thing to do was to end her suffering. But it was impossible to envision life without Chewie. She was more than just a dog—she was our four-legged family member.

by Hugo Bravo

In the early days of summer 2023, members of The Salvation Army Niagara Falls Citadel Corps knocked on over 2,000 doors to invite the community to a series of weekly summer BBQs. They also asked everyone if there was anything in their lives that they wanted the Salvationists to pray for.

by Warren L. Maye

Janet Perez Eckles confident smile fades and her eyes narrow when she asks herself, “If my vision returned, what would I want to see first? I would like to see the faces of my grandchildren. People tell me they’re beautiful children, but nobody can really describe them to me. I would also want to see the faces of my sons because I saw them when they were young, but in my mind, I can’t visualize them grown. I would want to see Dale, my hubby. Everybody says he’s so handsome. Yes, to see those faces, that would be a beautiful thing if God allowed me to see them.”

by Hugo Bravo

If you’re fortunate enough to meet style icon and business owner Yolanda Cellucci, it’s likely that she will greet you while dressed in the finest white outfit you’ve ever seen. White is her uniform for any event she takes part in, whether it’s hosting a fashion show with players from the Boston Celtics as runway models, or giving out toys at The Salvation Army in her hometown of Waltham, Mass.

by Hugo Bravo

If a sudden rain shower spoils your summer plans, why not make it a family game day instead? Board games, ranging from gently used to new, can be found at The Salvation Army.

by Guest

Jesus answers Peter’s question about the limits of forgiveness in the book of Matthew by telling a parable. The parable that Jesus tells makes it clear that the Kingdom of Heaven is a Kingdom of Forgiveness. It is a kingdom where forgiveness is free, plentiful, and undeserved. It is also a kingdom where there is little tolerance for unforgiveness.

by Hugo Bravo

In 1924, The Salvation Army received 116 acres of campground property in Sharon, Mass. The site, originally called a Fresh Air Camp, is now preparing to celebrate its 100th year as Camp Wonderland. Each year, “The Happy Summer Place” welcomes school children, many from underprivileged and inner-city areas, to experience a summer of music, activities—like climbing, swimming, hiking, arts and crafts, and archery—and a newunderstanding of Christ’s love, all amid His beautiful creation.

by Hugo Bravo

Lieutenant Shirley Figueroa, assistant corps officer at The Salvation Army’s San Juan Corps Community Center in Puerto Rico, talks about the way she honors both her father and God, lessons from King David’s loyalty, and her reason why accepting the call to officership can feel like a game of hide-and-seek.

by Guest

The Salvation Army has endured through storms, threats, and trials and has been described as the most effective organization in the United States. With such an accolade, it would be easy to think of the Army as a big ship at sea, easily traversing the waves, constant and sure of its direction, but that was not always so.

by Hugo Bravo

Three soldiers, sisters Lydmarie, Alondra, and Lyanet Rivera, from The Salvation Army in Puerto Rico reflect on the tragedy that changed their lives. Their father—their papi—Miguel A. Rivera Rodriguez did not return from work one day.

by Robert Mitchell

Anna and I couldn’t have been more different beyond our love of journalism and dedication to our chosen field. I grew up in a conservative family in the Midwest and became a born-again Christian at a young age. Anna hailed from the Northeast and was proud of both her liberalism and her Jewish faith. It’s fair to say we didn’t agree on much outside of the newsroom we shared every day, just a few desks apart. I had been at the newspaper for almost a decade when she came on board. I found out later there was some concern that we would clash.

by Robert Mitchell

Long before she performed “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)” in front of worldwide audiences with Hillsong United, singer Taya Smith-Gaukrodger took part in community worship nights that sometimes met at a tiny Salvation Army church in her hometown of Goonellabah, Australia. “What was really special is it was held in a poorer part of the community, and I just loved getting to see The Salvation Army be right at the center of getting to help people,”Taya recalls. “What’s really cool is I can still picture the cross in that church and you could see it from many different vantage points in the community. I loved that experience.

by Hugo Bravo

The solar panels over the parking lot and on the roof at The Salvation Army Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Camden, N.J., have modernized the Kroc, says Benjamin Ovadia, the center’s community relations and development director.