Spring Lake Rotary Scribes Report: November 30, 2018
Salvation Army
It’s that time of year again when we hear the bell ringing for the Salvation Army, which does wonderful things for those in need in our community. Majors Jay and Sally Davis of the Grand Haven Salvation Army joined us last Friday to brief us on what they do in our area, and how to contribute to their cause.
The Salvation Army tradition of bell-ringing, which happens from Thanksgiving up until Christmas Day, has been a part of their holiday fundraising efforts for 128 years. The kettle and bell first took root in San Francisco back in 1891, when a Salvation Army Captain was attempting to raise funds to feed 1,000 hungry people during the holidays. He received permission to use a kettle to collect donations for that cause (something he’d seen done in his hometown of Liverpool, England) and soon had more than enough funds to feed the group. This idea spread rapidly over the years, and the red kettle and bell remain to this day as a staple of on-site fundraising efforts. Our Spring Lake Rotarians have made it a holiday tradition to help ring the bell at the Spring Lake Orchard Market store each December.
These days, the Salvation Army has expanded their capabilities to be able to collect donations via a text-to-give campaign, so that those without cash in hand can still donate, as long as they have a cell phone. Last year, the Tri-Cities area Salvation Army collected over $30,000 through the holiday collection, and all those funds stayed local to help those in need in our own community. Another great way to contribute is through giving unwrapped, unopened toys directly to the Salvation Army, for use with their Angel Tree program.
There are people in need throughout the year of course, and the Salvation Army helps those folks in a number of ways. They have a year-round food pantry to help feed those families and individuals who would otherwise go without food. They host a summer lunch program for children 18 years of age and younger, so that when school is not in session, those children can still count on one healthy meal per day. They also have a program set up to help supplement and give rent and utilities payment assistance when needed. The Salvation Army holds a summer day camp near 5th/3rd ballpark that hosts a summer camp free to children who would like to attend. A back-to-school supply program is also run out of the Grand Haven office to help kids put together supplies needed to start back to school. The Salvation Army provides emergency housing to families with minor children who are in our public school system. Families that become homeless have the ability to transition and stabilize in an apartment setting for up to 90 days. There are also transitional homes that have the ability to house families for up to 1 or 2 years while they strive to meet certain goals that are predetermined by the Salvation Army in order to qualify for the housing assistance. The focus for these programs, including the “Pathway to Hope” program, is to help families move from crisis to stability.
The Salvation Army started in the Tri-Cities area just over 100 years ago, in downtown Grand Haven. In the mid-1970’s, the Salvation Army offices were moved to the current location, which is just behind the Home Depot on N. DeSpelder St. in Grand Haven. A recent capital campaign that was done for the Tri-Cities branch has allowed for a new multi-purpose center to be built on to the existing offices on DeSpelder. The site plans were recently approved, and they hope to break ground in Spring of 2019, and to finish construction by the beginning of 2020.
If you’d like to know more about what The Grand Haven Salvation Army is up to, please visit their website at:
or their Facebook page at:
50/50 Winner: Tracy Straight