Samuel Logan Brengle: Celebrating 150 Years in Fredericksburg

Down by the Blue River, among the lively old oaks and rolling hills of southern Indiana was born a man whose influence would someday travel the world. Samuel Logan Brengle, born  June 1, 1860 in Fredericksburg went on to become the first Salvation Army Commissioner born in the United States. The Indiana Division gathered in Fredericksburg on Sunday to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Brengle’s birth, with songs and stories.

After graduating from DePauw University in Indiana, Brengle spent much of his young adulthood making his way around the country evangelizing. “Many of our generation have stories to tell of relatives having shown hospitality to those such as Brengle. They get around, these itinerant traveling preachers.” said Commissioner Kenneth Baillie, who came to participate in the celebration. And the stories were lively on this day, as several locals wandered into the freshly cut field to share their memories of Brengle’s legacy in Fredericksburg. Local Ben Weathers described his experience at the 100th year remembrance of Brengle’s birth. He was only 16 at the time but remembers The Salvation Army personnel camping overnight by the river to carry out a more lengthy celebration. Weathers mingled for the afternoon, on this day 50 years later, and Commissioner Baillie presented him with a book by Brengle.

Fredericksburg United Methodist Episcopal Church, Brengle’s first church home, welcomed the Indiana Divisional Band and other guests, including Commissioners Kenneth and Joy Baillie and Majors Richard and Vicki Amick. Following the sermon, delivered by Commissioner Baillie, the festivities continued at the location of Samuel Brengle’s birth site just down the road from the church. Nearby was also a cemetery where several of Brengle’s relatives were laid to rest; small red flags marking the stones for visitors to recognize.

With the cooperation of mild temperatures and no rain, Roxanne Haley brought the EDS canteen from the New Albany Corps to serve lunch to the locals and guests. The afternoon was concluded by a short dedication and congratulatory words shared from various state and national leaders who could not attend.

The monuments and street signs at Jefferson and Fredericksburg/Depauw Rd.  will remain to mark the birth site of Samuel Brengle for all who wish to visit and pay tribute to the man who said with passion for his savior and people, “All that God asks is that the heart should be cleansed from sin, and full of love, whether it be the tender heart of the little child, with feeble powers of loving, or of the full-grown man, or of the flaming archangel before the throne. This is holiness and this only. It is nothing less than this, and it can be nothing more.”

National Salvation Army Week Coming Soon – with local events

The Salvation Army will celebrate National Salvation Army Week May 10-16. Among the special events planned for the week include:

Monday, May 10 – Dine to Donate at BD’s Mongolian Grill (3838 E. 82nd Street, Castleton) $15 for all-you-can-eat entrée, soup and salad. Guest grillers and more info coming soon.

Tuesday, May 11 – WWI Salvation Army Doughnut Girls exhibit dedication, Indiana War Memorial (431 N. Meridian Street, Indianapolis)

Thursday, May 13 – Dine to Donate at Max & Erma’s (5899 E. 86th Street, Castleton) 4-10pm. 20% of dine-in and carry out proceeds will benefit The Salvation Army.

Friday, May 14 – Eat Outside the Box (Veteran’s Memorial Plaza, 550 N. Meridian Street, Indianapolis) 10am-2pm.

Founded in London England, The Salvation Army came to the United States when Lieutenant Eliza Shirley left England to join her parents, who had migrated to America in search for work. In 1879, she held the first meeting of The Salvation Army in America, in Philadelphia.  On March 10, 1880, Commissioner George Scott Railton and seven other officers arrived in New York City to begin the Army’s mission there. Three years later, Railton and other Salvationists had expanded their operation into California, Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Read more

Local Response Team Heads to Haiti

The Indianapolis Salvation Army sent its first Disaster Response team to Haiti today. The 3 person team flew out from Indianapolis International Airport at 3:25 PM for Fort Lauderdale, and will fly to Port-Au-Prince tomorrow. They will be part of a national Salvation Army disaster team that will respond to the overwhelming need in Haiti for the next 2 weeks. A new team will relieve them on January 30 and they will return on January 31.

The local team is made up of Salvation Army Disaster Service Director – Jerry Larsen, and Salvation Army Officers – Captain Marcos Ramirez and Captain Geff Crowell. Internationally, Jerry Larsen is one of The Salvation Army’s most highly trained disaster response people. He has served at 9/11 in New York, Iraq, Sri Lanka, and numerous other response operations. In Haiti, Jerry will take on an administrative position while Captains Ramirez and Crowell will be assigned to hydration and, spiritual and emotional care. All three men have extensive disaster service experience and training.

This will most likely be the first of several Salvation Army response teams from Indiana. “The devastation is so vast, and the need is so great, that The Salvation Army will be providing aid for many months to come,” said Larsen. National and International teams will continue to serve on 2 week tours for the foreseeable future.

Welcome

Welcome to our Website! First, we would like to share our mission and vision for the Harbor Light Corps/Center. Primarily, people know us as the Harbor Light – those who help people with addiction. Secondly but most importantly, we would like you to know that we are a place where people in recovery and their families can worship and be ministered to.

Mission Statement of the Harbor Light Center

The Salvation Army Harbor Light provides a full continuum of Addictions, Transitional Housing, and supportive services with spiritual development. The Center is committed to providing the highest quality of care for our participants. The Center values the staff by our commitment to cultural competency, business ethics, training and development, and best practices in human resource management.”

Corps Vision Statement

We believe this is a ministry of “redeeming the time” for the whole person as we meet their needs through our different outreach programs. We are growing a spiritual nurturing place of worship to feed souls that are in recovery as they find healing in Jesus Christ.

We would like to invite you to our Sunday Bible Study and Worship Services

9:30 a.m. Bible Study

10:45 a.m. Morning Worship Service

We do offer Bible Studies throughout the week.

If you are interested please contact our chaplain’s office.

Clinical Services Offered

Detoxification Services

This is a residential program which provides medical intervention 24-hours a day for individuals with acute physical distress as a result of their alcohol and drug abuse. We are state licensed and certified as well as supervised by a licensed physician. In order to receive treatment in this area of the facility you will need to call in and go through a phone interview, set up an appointment and go through an assessment in person upon arrival. The morning after arriving in our facility you will see the physician and he will estimate the amount of time you will need to spend in our detoxification service. During your time you may receive a medication regimen for the management of the withdrawal symptoms and health risk involved in the process. No visitors and limited phone calls are allowed during this time due to the risk factor for the consumer. A clinical assessment is completed during this time for the participant to decide what additional services will be needed for their recovery to be successful.

Residential Treatment

This is a 14 day program which offers 24 hours supervised living with high structured addictions programming. The programming consists of educational classes related to chemical dependency, relapse, and recovery skills. Programming is designed to teach basic recovery and life management skills to increase the individual’s ability to function effectively at home, work and socially. This program is enhanced by offering adult basic education classes (GED), social and recreational activities, on-site 12-step meetings, family education, HIV education and testing, case management, individual, group and spiritual counseling. Sunday Family/Friend Visitation is offered beginning with church and ending at 3:00 p.m. Lunch is served on site. Also, on Monday evenings there is Family Night Education at 7:00 p.m.

Outpatient Treatment

We provide several different levels of outpatient services. Intensive Outpatient Treatment is 8-15 weeks of cognitive-based group sessions including educational sessions. These groups meet three times a week for three hours. Groups are offered during the day and evening for accessibility. We are not offering these in Espanol. Education Classses last for 15 weeks and meet for one hour each week .These are designed for those in need of basic education about addictions. Relapse Prevention is a 10-15 week program and meets once a week for one hour. Participants will develop relapse prevention tools, skills, and the techniques needed to maintain abstinence. Aftercare is offered one hour a week for up to 20 weeks following IOP in order to monitor participants during their continued recovery. ALL program participants are required to take part in 12-step meetings, on-site drug testing, and the family components that are available.

Transitional Housing

This program provides affordable housing to adult men and women ages 18+ who are in need of temporary housing. We basically have three types of living quarters available: private, semi-private and dorm room setting. Each resident receives three meals, snacks, clean linen, GED classes, access to an on-site computer lab, and 12-step meetings. The center provides this at a nominal fee. The above programs are provided to them at additional cost. The goal of this program is to provide each individual with an opportunity to have a successful reintegration into the community by obtaining employment, private residence and/or community living. This program is not just for those in recovery for alcohol and drug abuse but for those who may be homeless and need a fresh start as they realize their need to make changes in their lives.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

We thought you would never ask . . .

Most of our people that come in for help are indigent. Not only this but they have burnt many bridges with their family and close friends. Understandably so, as trust is a huge issue in the addiction lifestyle. Therefore, they may have no one to turn to for funding to begin their new lives. The first thing you can do is to pray for the people we serve.

In 2007, we served:

Consumers 2,914

Groups/Attendance 2,333/45,870

Meals 113,410

Lodging 32,286

Clothing Items Given 2,559

Personal Comfort Kits 1,564

Transportation Tickets 1,410

Transported Individuals 1,710

Volunteers/Hours 1,227 volunteers with 23,587 hours

Seekers 574 with over 3070 of follow-up hours from the chaplains and pastoral staff.

A DONATION OF $360 PAYS FOR ONE RESIDENT TO BE A PART OF THE TRANSTIONAL HOUSING PROGRAM FOR ONE MONTH. YOU CAN MAKE THIS DONATION IN SEVERAL DIFFERENT WAYS: A ONE TIME GIFT OR YOU CAN PROVIDE A GIFT FOR A WEEK EACH MONTH ($90) TO HELP ONE TO GET STARTED. ANY AMOUNT YOU GIVE WILL HELP ONE PERSON GET A FRESH START.

IF YOU DESIRE TO HELP SOMEONE IN THE ADDICTIONS AREA THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE FUNDING TO MOVE FORWARD IN THE PROGRAM WE WOULD SUGGEST THAT YOU CONTACT US ABOUT GIVING A DONATION AT 317-972-1450 AND SPEAK TO THE CORPS OFFICER OR THE BUSINESS OPERATIONS DIRECTOR. WE NOT ONLY TAKE CHECKS – WE TAKE VISA AND MASTERCARD – DEBIT OR CREDIT – OVER THE PHONE AND IN PERSON BETWEEN THE HOURS OF 9:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY.