Haitian Students Return To Reconstructed Schools: Good News About The Salvation Army’s Continued Work In Haiti

Nearly 700 students started the school year in newly repaired Salvation Army school buildings. The Haiti Recovery and Development School Renovation and Construction team worked hard during the summer months to start, and finish, repairs on four of six priority schools scheduled for improvements in 2011.

Not only were project manager David White and assistant project manager Raymond Cédoine working hard to ensure schools were ready for the start of classes, but they were building local capacity by training a maintenance team in repair and upkeep of the buildings. The work included masonry and carpentry work, roofing, latrine and electrical repair and installation of water catchment systems.

Heavy rains contributing to impassable road conditions have slowed progress on schools in Bellegarde and Campeche, but work should be completed by Christmas. ‘We have met many challenges and overcome them with everyday problem solving and great determination,’ said David.

By the end of 2014, almost 20 schools affected by the earthquake will have been repaired and reconstructed. There are seven schools slated for 2012, including two new constructions.

David said, ‘We are excited about the wonderful repaired and constructed schools The Salvation Army in Haiti is receiving.’

 

About The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for 129 years in the United States. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. 82 cents of every dollar spent is used to support those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to www.salvationarmyusa.org.

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Need Christmas Assistance?

We know it’s only October, but Christmas seems to come quicker every year. That can be a little unsettling considering the state of the economy and the recent reports on the poverty rates in Indiana – 16.3% -  the highest in 30 years. Let’s face it, families are struggling to make ends meet. Many folks in Indiana are beginning to inquire about Christmas assistance.  It’s overwhelming when you can hardly come up with the basics – like rent, utilities, gas, etc. Who can bear to think about making sure their children have a few gifts under the Christmas tree while worrying about putting food on the table night after night?

That’s where The Salvation Army comes in. We’re here not only here to assist people with those everyday necessities, but also to bring a little joy to children & their families at Christmastime. With that spirit of giving, we invite you to contact your local community’s Salvation Army Corps at the beginning of November to begin the application for Christmas assistance. You can locate the phone number and email for the officer in charge, in the “Contact Us” section of this website. We’ll be happy to answer your questions and direct you to the date, time, and place for applying to get help for Christmas 2011.

Salvation Army Teams Serve Irene First Responders

As Hurricane Irene heads for the eastern seaboard, The Salvation Army is moving personnel and vehicles into strategic staging locations in North Carolina and Pennsylvania. From these locations The Salvation Army will dispatch mobile feeding units to provide food, drinks and spiritual and emotional care to emergency responders and those affected by the storm. Disaster response teams are already on the ground from Florida to Maine, serving first responders, assisting the evacuation of low lying areas, feeding at shelters and providing a broad range of support before Hurricane Irene makes landfall.

“We are taking this hurricane extremely seriously and are working closely with partner agencies to ensure we can provide a strong response to any impacts of the storm,” said Major George Hood, National Community Relations Secretary for The Salvation Army in the U.S. “Our personnel will be working overnight and throughout the weekend to guarantee we can meet the needs.”

In total, The Salvation Army has 370 canteens and five mobile feeding kitchens throughout the region. Collectively, these stations can provide several hundred thousand meals per day when operating at full capacity.  Also, The Salvation Army is standing up a broad range of services, in coordination with local, state and federal governments, including supporting shelter operations and evacuations.

The Salvation Army has already begun to serve those impacted by Hurricane Irene in Puerto Rico by providing support to the homeless, sick and disabled. Several hundred thousand residents of Puerto Rico are currently without power and Salvation Army shelters continue to be available in Puerto Rico, St. Thomas and St. Croix . In the Bahamas, an emergency operations center has been established in Kingston. The Salvation Army has begun initial distribution of food and water supplies. There is also a plan in place to ship Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) and bottled water to the Turks and Caicos later this week. In addition, representatives of The Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Service Team have been asked to partner with the Bahamas National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to survey and assess the damage on the islands of Acklins and Mayaguana.

Yesterday, Commissioner William Roberts, the National Commander of The Salvation Army, declared Hurricane Irene a national disaster, which puts all units on alert status throughout the United States.  All divisions of The Salvation Army stand ready to assist by preparing staff, equipment and supplies to support impacted areas along the East Coast. The Salvation Army is asking residents of the entire East Coast, from the Carolinas to New England, to be prepared with an emergency disaster plan and heed all evacuation orders from public officials. Critical decisions need to be made ahead of time, before the storm makes landfall.

For more information on The Salvation Army’s response to Hurricane Irene, please visit http://blog.salvationarmyusa.org/, www.facebook.com/salvationarmyindiana or www.twitter.com/SAIndiana.

Monetary donations:
The best way to help now is to call 1-800-SAL-ARMY (1-800-725-2769) or go to donate.salvationarmyusa.org/Irene to make a donation by credit card. Checks may be mailed to The Salvation Army Disaster Gift Processing Center, P.O. Box 1959, Atlanta, GA 30301. Donations should be designated: “2011 Hurricane Season” Cell phone users may also text the word STORM to 80888. A one-time donation of $10 will be billed to your mobile phone bill**.
**Messaging and date rates may apply. Donations are collected for The Salvation Army by mobilecause.com. Reply STOP to 80888 to stop. Reply HELP to 80888 for help. For terms, see www.igfn.org/t.
Donations of used Household Goods and Clothing:
Due to the high expense and time demands associated with delivering your gently-used household goods and clothing (gifts-in-kind), The Salvation cannot guarantee that any individual gifts-in-kind donated now will be sent to the disaster area. In time of disaster, our stores fill these needs from existing, pre-sorted stock. By continuing to donate gently-used household goods to your local Salvation Army store, you not only help your community, you help us prepare for future disaster relief needs. To find your nearest drop-off location, please go to www.satruck.org.

About The Salvation Army:
The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for more than 130 years in the United States. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. 82 cents of every dollar spent is used to support those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to www.salvationarmyusa.org.

The Salvation Army Prepares For National Emergency: National Commander Declares Hurricane Irene a National Disaster

Alexandria, Virginia (August 26, 2011) – In advance of Hurricane Irene, Commissioner William Roberts, the National Commander of The Salvation Army, today declared a national disaster, which puts all units on alert status throughout the United States.  All divisions of The Salvation Army stand ready to assist by preparing staff, equipment and supplies to support impacted areas along the East Coast. The Salvation Army will provide food, drinks and spiritual and emotional care to emergency responders and survivors in impacted areas between the Carolinas and New England. “While it is customary to declare such an event a ‘national’ disaster after the hurricane has reached land, I am taking the step to make that declaration today in consideration of various logistical decisions that must be made,” said Commissioner Roberts. “As The Salvation Army now moves into strategic positions that will put us directly at the point of need, we are praying for God’s mercy upon all of those who will be caught in the direct path of this very large storm.”
The Salvation Army has already begun to serve those affected by Hurricane Irene in Puerto Rico by providing support to the homeless, sick and disabled. Nearly 800,000 residents of Puerto Rico are without power and Salvation Army shelters continue to be available in Puerto Rico, St. Thomas and St. Croix . In the Bahamas, an emergency operations center has been established in Kingston. The Salvation Army has begun initial distribution of food and water supplies. There is also a plan in place to ship Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) and bottled water to the Turks and Caicos later this week.
Salvation Army locations across the United States have mobile feeding units on standby – these units are able to provide hundreds of thousands of meals per day if needed. In the Carolinas specifically, the Army has 30 mobile canteens able to provide in excess of 45,000 meals when operating at full capacity. An Incident Command Team has been established in Charlotte, NC and will deploy to the Carolina coast once the storm passes.
The Salvation Army is asking residents of the entire East Coast, from the Carolinas to New England, to be prepared with an emergency disaster plan and heed all evacuation orders from public officials. Critical decisions need to be made ahead of time, before the storm makes landfall.
For more information on The Salvation Army’s preparation and response to Hurricane Irene, please visit http://blog.salvationarmyusa.org/, www.facebook.com/salvationarmyindiana or www.twitter.com/SAIndiana.

Monetary donations:
The best way to help now is to call 1-800-SAL-ARMY (1-800-725-2769) or go to donate.salvationarmyusa.org/Irene to make a donation by credit card. Checks may be mailed to The Salvation Army Disaster Gift Processing Center, P.O. Box 1959, Atlanta, GA 30301. Donations should be designated: “2011 Hurricane Season” Cell phone users may also text the word STORM to 80888. A one-time donation of $10 will be billed to your mobile phone bill**.
**Messaging and date rates may apply. Donations are collected for The Salvation Army by mobilecause.com. Reply STOP to 80888 to stop. Reply HELP to 80888 for help. For terms, see www.igfn.org/t.
Donations of used Household Goods and Clothing:
Due to the high expense and time demands associated with delivering your gently-used household goods and clothing (gifts-in-kind), The Salvation cannot guarantee that any individual gifts-in-kind donated now will be sent to the disaster area. In time of disaster, our stores fill these needs from existing, pre-sorted stock. By continuing to donate gently-used household goods to your local Salvation Army store, you not only help your community, you help us prepare for future disaster relief needs. To find your nearest drop-off location, please go to www.satruck.org.

About The Salvation Army:
The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for more than 130 years in the United States. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. 82 cents of every dollar spent is used to support those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to www.salvationarmyusa.org.

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