Snapshot
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.
Warren L. Maye
They say that at any given moment, we pretend not to see, hear, feel, or smell something around us. It’s a reflex. A mechanism of self-preservation, a way of getting through our discomfort. Be it on the street, on the train, or in a room, we reason that to do anything else would be inappropriate, awkward, or downright dangerous. But the truth is, we do see, and many times we deeply care. In those moments, God calls us to sense His presence and be prepared to do something.
Warren L. Maye
Lieutenant Clifford Douglas, a Salvation Army officer and pastor, rings the bell at Christmastime in New York City.
Bell ringers typically share heartwarming reflections when asked about their service on those frequently cold December days. One said, “Some people give us donations, others stop to chat, and some even stay and sing awhile with us.”
Warren L. Maye
Young campers pray together after seeing a “Jesus Theater” performance at a Salvation Army camp in Ohio.
Warren L. Maye
Recently, the New York Staff Band of The Salvation Army used music to express the glory of God in a concert called “Creation” by Dorothy Gates, then the band’s composer in residence. The band, now more than 145 years in existence, is among the finest Christian band in performance.
Warren L. Maye
These young dancers of the Territorial Arts Ministries (TAM) summer camp are diligent in their pursuit of skills that will allow them to express their heartfelt message of hope.
Warren L. Maye
People line up outside The Salvation Army Brooklyn Sunset Park Corps Community Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., during lunchtime.
Programs
Hugo Bravo
Before Captain Wanessa Moore planned the first Women’s Empowerment Day at The Salvation Army’s Northern Kentucky Corps, the center was already a welcoming space for survivors of trauma.
Hugo Bravo
Captain Bree Barker, a longtime snowboarder and skier, knows that those winter sports provide lessons in perseverance. “When you start, you are going to fall a lot. And when you fall in the cold snow with your skis or snowboard, and all your heavy gear on you, it’s a task just to get back up,” says Barker, a pastor at the Troy Temple Corps in upstate New York.
Hugo Bravo
The Salvation Army’s contribution to Toyland, a two–day Christmas celebration at the Jackson Township Senior Center in Jackson, N.J., begins with a gift of about 2,000 teddy bears.
Hugo Bravo
For a new fundraising ministry, members of the Salvation Army’s Buffalo N.Y., Corps got some inspiration from the Midwest. “The Minneapolis Corps was doing a day of events and competition across the city,” says Laurie Krajna.
Hugo Bravo
“The Salvation Army Plugged in Podcast,” originated from the need to reach others, is hosted by Matthew Luhn, divisional Music & Gospel Arts director, and Captains Loreita and Nate Hinzman, divisional youth secretaries in Massachusetts.
Hugo Bravo
Like many grade schools, high schools, and colleges, Sunday schools have adapted to significant changes due to COVID–19 restrictions. They have fewer meetings and far shorter time periods than do other schools, and some have gone virtual or have been canceled.
People
Hugo Bravo
Sebastian Galvez, president of The Salvation Army’s Echelon Chapter in Morristown, N.J., talks about his gap year after high school, a pet contest on social media that introduced people to the Army’s work, and the power of an act of kindness.
Hugo Bravo
Michelle Harris, volunteer coordinator and outreach worker at The Salvation Army York Citadel in Pennsylvania, talks about why she enjoys working with children at the corps, the ministry that her volunteers have requested to start.
Hugo Bravo
Lieutenant Melissa Bonet, pastor at The Salvation Army Ridgewood Citadel in Queens, N.Y., talks about her former career in pastry design, and why being “God—fearing” is a different mindset from “fearing God.”
Hugo Bravo
Katina Polemenako, a social worker at The Salvation Army North Shore Corps in Salem, Mass., talks about the role prayer plays in social work, how the Army honored her late mother, and why her love of both country and community are inextricably linked.
Hugo Bravo
Lieutenant Ismael Ortiz, commanding officer at The Salvation Army Corps Community Center in Wilkes–Barre, Pa., talks about finding God in jail; a vehicle that started a ministry; and leadership skills that came from the streets, but thrived in the Church.
Hugo Bravo
Captain Mike Buzzard, an officer at The Salvation Army Berwick, Pa., Corps, talks about working at Camp Allegheny, “Forced Creativity” during COVID–19, and integrating his love of professional wrestling with ministry.
Hugo Bravo
CAPTAIN LENISSA RIVERA, pastor at The Salvation Army’s Newport, R.I. church, talks about performing live at the Apollo, learning piano during school lunch hours, and how music has become the gift in her life that has kept on giving.
Hugo Bravo
Chris Farrand, the Salvation Army's regional Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) director for Massachusetts and Southern New England, talks about recognizing a sign from God, visiting COVID–19 patients in hotels, and lessons he learned from shepherding in England.
Hugo Bravo
Cassidy Bowers, formerly an event and volunteer program manager for The Salvation Army Massachusetts Divisional Headquarters, talks about learning new skills and ways to serve during COVID–19; what it’s like to put on the Salvation Army’s mascot costume; and what she looks forward to doing when the pandemic is over.
Faith in Action
Robert Mitchell
The Salvation Army is meeting a major housing need in Buffalo, while creating opportunities to share God’s love.
Hugo Bravo
For new fundraiser ideas to help its mission, The Salvation Army in Buffalo, N.Y., got some inspiration from the Midwest. “In Minnesota, the Minneapolis Corps offered a day of events that included a competition like the show ‘The Amazing Race,’” says Laurie Krajna, development director at The Salvation Army Buffalo Area Services, WNY Region.
Robert Mitchell
Most young men first learn about woodworking in their high school wood shop class, but Captain Darell Houseton, a pastor in The Salvation Army, discovered a different path.
“My high school didn’t offer anything close to wood shop,” says Houseton, who went to Irvington High School in Irvington, N.J., before his days as an officer.
Hugo Bravo
Members of Joanne Small’s community lovingly gave her the title “Mother of the Kroc” because she was a warm, motherly soul with a love for people and boundless energy to help others, whether it be as a teacher, a caregiver or as a listening ear. Her expertly crafted nails and Air Jordan sneakers earned her the nickname “Ms. J.” There wasn’t a job at the Boston Kroc Center that Ms. J could not do, and there wasn’t a person in need who she could turn away.
Hugo Bravo
Hours before their historic concert in Cuba, members of The Salvation Army’s New York Staff Band (NYSB) traded their brass instruments and uniforms for paintbrushes and T–shirts. Joining them was Commissioner E. Sue Swanson, territorial president of Women’s Ministries, Lt. Colonel Kenneth W. Maynor, territorial program secretary, and soldiers and officers of the Havana Central Corps. That morning, everyone pitched in to help give the 55–year–old corps, which also serves as the Divisional Headquarters, a makeover.
Guest
I have always been intrigued by the existence of human trafficking in our world. I’ve often wondered, how could such a heinous crime be so prevalent in a world that we say is so advanced?
In pursuing this question, I was told that the answer is to combat this crime through our purchasing decisions...
All of these strategies were great, but I wanted to do more.
Robert Mitchell
“Will you content yourselves with sitting in a chapel, week after week, while countless men and women, boys and girls, die and go in to eternity without ever hearing the good news of Jesus Christ?”
At the recent Candidates Seminar, Lt. Colonel Eddie Hobgood asked this question of his audience as he portrayed Joe the Turk, the Salvation Army’s legendary evangelist.
Robert Mitchell
The audience at the Friday night Candidates Seminar had just witnessed a powerful drama about the life of Salvationist pioneer Joe the Turk, a courageous evangelist who took Christ’s message to the streets.
Then Colonel Janet Munn, principal of the College for Officer Training (CFOT), told a gym full of potential officers that God is looking for people from the current generation to demonstrate a similar evangelistic spirit.
History
Guest
by Rob Jeffery
Women have played a vital role in ministry for The Salvation Army since its beginnings
Warren L. Maye
Excitement filled our hearts the day we began the rollout of a new multimedia, multilingual magazine designed to reach people with the love of Christ. Its name, SAconnects, implied that it was also intended to link you, our reader, to everything about The Salvation Army and beyond. Our plan was to connect you to a diverse community of believers through English, Spanish, and Korean languages, in print and online.
Warren L. Maye
On the eve of their retirement, Commissioners William A. and G. Lorraine Bamford reflect on their ministry as leaders of The Salvation Army USA Eastern Territory and share their hope for the future.
Robert Mitchell
On Oct. 31, children and adults will again indulge in the pagan custom of Halloween. But did you know that a history–changing event known as the “Protestant Reformation” marks the same day?
Guest
BY ROBERT JEFFERY
These meetings are of such longstanding in our Eastern Territory that it’s tempting to take them for granted, or to think of them as just another event on the calendar. We know it simply as “O–O–B” and talk about it in such familiar ways. But the camp meetings at OOB did not come about just so people could have a fun beach vacation; it was a chosen location for people to gather and encounter the Holy Spirit.
Robert Mitchell
Nestled in the woods off a rural road in Warren, Conn., is a simple monument marking the birthplace of the Rev. Charles Finney, known as the “Father of Modern Revivalism.” A plaque is imbedded in the stone that was erected by Ohio’s Oberlin College, where Finney served as president.
Guest
BY ROB JEFFERY
...even as she prays, a well–aimed bottle strikes the trombone player. He rubs his head in pain. Despite the mob’s egging, no fists are raised in retaliation from the men and women in blue. Instead, the Salvationists form a circle and pray even more. This is what open–air ministry looked like in the early days. It is quite a contrast between then and now. Back then, open–air work was brutal. Yet, the Army was refined in those fires of persecution.
Guest
by Rob Jeffery
The year 1890 was a milestone in the history of The Salvation Army. It was, as Charles Dickens might say, “the best of times and the worst of times.”
Guest
by Robert Jeffery
Looking back to the origins of The Salvation Army, many people are quick to point out that it wasn’t William Booth’s intention to start a church. This is an overstatement of the truth.
Warren L. Maye
The Salvation Army’s global influence caused many pivotal moments in history. One example transformed the way the world viewed sex trafficking. In early 1880s, the law said that a young woman of 13 was legally competent to consent to her own seduction.
Warren L. Maye
Breathtaking is the word that describes the view from One World Observatory, 102 stories above Manhattan Island atop of One World Trade Center. Formerly known as the Freedom Tower, it stands next to the memorial that marks the site of the World Trade Center tragedy.
Now, 20* (originally published in 2021) years later, my memories of the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings remain vivid.
Warren L. Maye
In the 1900s, famous scholars such as John Dewey, Francis Galton, and Sigmund Freud fostered intellectual debates at conventions on the topic of mental health. Their discussions and presentations led to new ideas on modern, scientific, and applied psychology. But over time, frequent and dramatic shifts in perspectives made it apparent that something more was needed to truly offer peace to distressed minds.
Warren L. Maye
"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it,” Proverbs 22:6 (KJV) asserts. But how that outcome manifests can be complex and complicated. Take for example the family of William and Catherine Booth, founders of The Salvation Army. This Methodist couple had eight children. Each became involved in life–changing ministry, but also endured great struggles. Two of the children grew up to be international leaders of this historic church, yet three other children eventually left the movement to establish their own heartfelt ministries.
Warren L. Maye
Recent national and world events with respect to social, racial, and political unrest have in some ways hindered and in other ways helped the spirit of reconciliation among our diverse populations.
So, a burning question is, “How do we actually rekindle a sense of hope and restoration among people and rise from the ashes of pain and suffering in a post–COVID–19 world?”
Warren L. Maye
Rehabilitation has always been the goal of the Salvation Army’s ministry to people who are tempted to misuse substances. From its inception in 1881 when William Booth, founder of The Salvation Army, opened shelters in England for the homeless and alcohol abusers, to the 1900s in the United States where men who suffered from similar social and spiritual handicaps collected discarded cardboard and metal scraps to make ends meet.
