New Community Relations and Volunteer Coordinator Appointed

It happens so often in Bloomington, that people regularly move out of town to pursue educational or employment opportunities. That’s what’s happening at the Bloomington Corps, and did we ever luck out with this appointment!

Courtney Grau is the latest addition to The Salvation Army and she brings a lot to the table. We couldn’t be happier. She’s local. She’s experienced. And she has an asset that’s vitally important to working in the non-profit sector: tons of energy accompanying an ever present smile.

Courtney begins work here on August 02, and we hope that you’ll take the time to get to know her. If you don’t get to sit in on committees with her or volunteer here at The Salvation Army, you’ll be hearing from her soon enough. In the meantime, stay posted to this site and our Facebook page for exciting updates on ministries Courtney will be leading.

Bloomington Officer is Working Hard

Lt. Jonathan Fizgerald, the Bloomington Corps Officer, works in the brutally hot heat of Port-au-Prince where he is in charge of logistics and distribution for food and other supplies in the tent city of 20,000 that The Salvation Army oversees. Helping the local economy, he hires local Haitians to assist. The security is provided by the United States military, which makes the distributions run smoothly.

Beyond food, Lt. Fitzgerald and other relief workers are helping to prepare the region for the upcoming rainy season. With so many people living on a soccer field, the health and property risks are great. So, The Salvation Army will distributed tarps which will replace the tents made of sheets. The Salvation Army is also working on improving the sanitation for those living in the tent city.

The Salvation Army has been hard at work since the earthquake hit and in the first month of the disaster delivered 558,000 pounds of relief supplies for the suffering people of Haiti. “The logistical precision of this operation is amazing,” remarked Major George Polarek, Assistant Director of The Salvation Army’s World Services Office.

To date 2.6 million meals, nearly 3,000 tents, and 8,710 pounds of medical supplies were delivered to Haiti. In addition to Port-au-Prince where Lt. Jonathan serves, service sites are located in Petit Goave and Jacmel and distribution sites are in Croix-des-Bouquets (6 mi east of PAP) and Balan (18 mi east of PAP). Its medical clinic continues to treat more than 250 people a day on-site, with several transfers daily to the hospital.

To assist in these efforts, please visit www.bloomington.salvationarmyindiana.org and click on the picture of Lt. Jonathan holding his daughter. You may also contribute $10 via your phone bill by text messaging the word “HAITI” to 52000, and confirming the donation with the word, “Yes”, and through the mail at: The Salvation Army, PO Box 2117, Bloomington, IN. 47402 with designation “Haiti Earthquake.”

JCPENNEY AND THE SALVATION ARMY LAUNCH LARGEST ONLINE ANGEL GIVING TREE PROGRAM IN BLOOMINGTON AND NATIONWIDE

J. C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE: JCP) and The Salvation Army are joining forces this Christmas season to give joy to even more people in need through a grand-scale online Angel Giving Tree program. From now until December 14, for the first-time ever, customers can adopt and shop online for Angels at www.jcp.com/angel, providing tens of thousands of children and seniors facing hardship in communities across the country with Christmas gifts.

“In a year when so many need help, the new online Angel Giving Tree program will extend our reach and make it easier for our customers and Associates to give back this holiday season,” said Mike Boylson, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for JCPenney. “By leveraging the strength of jcp.com, we are helping to modernize an American tradition – the Angel Tree program – and creating an innovative way to help families in need in our communities across the nation. Launching this program with The Salvation Army allows us to elevate our support for a cause that is extremely important to our customers and Associates, underscoring our focus on the ‘Joy of Giving’ this holiday season.”

The new online Angel Giving Tree program builds on the legacy of The Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program that has been in operation for more than 40 years.

Created in collaboration with JCPenney partners Razorfish, Akamai Technologies, Sapient and Tata, the online Angel Giving Tree program allows customers to adopt an Angel at jcp.com/angel and conveniently shop for them online at jcp.com, in JCPenney stores or at any location they choose. In a few easy steps, customers can visit the site to request an Angel by location, age range and gender. An Angel who matches the criteria will be e-mailed to the customer along with a list of needed items. The confirmation e-mail will also include a link to view drop-off locations in the customer’s area and ship-to addresses for online orders.

In collaboration with FedEx Ground, Angel Giving Tree gifts purchased through jcp.com can be shipped free of charge to any one of the 1,200 Salvation Army collection centers nationwide – putting the entire selection, shopping and delivery process at the customer’s fingertips.

Supporting the online Angel Giving Tree program will be a multimedia marketing campaign including in-store, print, online and e-mail advertising as well as social media initiatives through Facebook Connect. JCPenney Facebook fans will be able to access the Angel Giving Tree website directly as well as post and share their Angel adoption with their friends.

The online Angel Giving Tree program builds on JCPenney’s legacy of operating in an ethical and socially responsible manner. In 2007, the Company launched its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative – C.A.R.E.S. – stemming from the vision that JCPenney cares for its Community, Associates, Responsible Sourcing, Environment and Sustainable Products. The Company’s commitment to social responsibility reflects its philosophy that “Every Day Matters” – for its customers, Associates, communities, investors and suppliers.

For further information contact:

Lt. Jonathon and Catherine Fitzgerald: 812-336-4310

More Partners Join The Salvation Army Back to School Effort

Spirit 95, Bloomington’s family friendly radio station, announced that they would collect items for The Salvation Army Back to School drive. So if you live on Bloomington’s east side, drop your back to school items off at Spirit 95.

The Life Church has similarly committed to collect supplies, bringing the number of churches partnering in this endeavor to six.

The back to school giveaway will begin at 9:30am on Tuesday, August 04,  and will go until supplies last. It will be an interesting as the Bloomington Corps has already recieved reports of families intending to line up in the early morning hours…

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