Gearing Up for Tools for Schools

Volunteers are busy gearing up for the Tools for Schools distribution this Saturday, August 11. Celebrating its seventeenth year, The Salvation Army Lafayette Corps will join with WLFI News 18 and sponsors Regions Bank, Subway Restaurants, Sigma Medical Group, and Pay Less Super Markets to distribute school supplies to Tippecanoe County students in need.

Distribution will begin at 9:00 a.m. and conclude at 12:00 p.m. Parents requesting assistance are asked to bring picture i.d., social security card for each student in the family, and proof of income.

 

It’s About Discovery at Hidden Falls

Tucked away in a sprawling section of woods near Bedford, excited summer campers flock to Hidden Falls Camp. It’s a place where cell phones, video games and television are replaced with adventure and friendship in a Christian setting.

 

Campers are given the opportunity to experience the outdoors, learn new skills, and build lasting friendships whether they are immersed in an age-based, sports or music camp setting. Even grown-ups have the chance to enjoy camp at the end of summer during family camp.

This summer’s “Happy Camper” theme gives campers the opportunity to enjoy a variety of activities including swimming, hiking, crafts, games, singing, skits, and more. Adventurous campers are able to play paintball and defy heights on a ropes challenge course.

But Salvation Army camps are about more than just adventure. Campers are also able to discover themselves and grow in God’s grace and knowledge.

Hidden Falls’ positive and fun experience has campers returning year after year. Happy camping!

Homeward Bound Walk to Benefit The Salvation Army Lafayette Family Shelter

 

     Since its inception in 2003, Homeward Bound has raised more than $3 million for over 100 affordable housing and homeless service providers across the state. Each Homeward Bound event is organized and governed by a local steering committee made up of dedicated community leaders. All funds raised stay in the communities in which they are raised.

     The Salvation Army here in Lafayette has participated in and benefited from the local Homeward Bound Walk-a-thons since 2005 because of people like you who care enough to make a difference in the lives of people affected by homelessness.

     Whether you are able to walk, sponsor, or simply encourage others to get involved in this year’s walk, we at The Salvation Army salute you for your support!

Reflections in Hope

Four weeks ago today, tornados ripped through southern Indiana leaving a trail of devastation and changing the course of lives. I stand amazed and humbly awed by those who quickly and selflessly came to the aid of people in need. While coordinating spiritual and emotional care in the Marysville and Henryville area, it was my pleasure to have a team of responders from Hope Force International dispatched to work with The Salvation Army.

Chuck Duby, Hope Force Chaplain, served as team leader for the Hope Force group.  After working with another international ministry for 17 years in multiple capacities, Chuck joined the Hope Force staff nearly 6 years ago.

Phil Fenn, a businessman from Nashville, Tennessee, was in California with his wife on business when the tornados hit. He postponed his business activities and quickly returned to the Midwest so he could serve people in need in Indiana.

Jess, an ER nurse, and Davey Anderson, a personal trainer, are 28 & 29 years old and have been married two years.  Following missions training and an outreach to Cambodia, they felt led to leave their home in California to join the Hope Force Staff in Tennessee. They arrived in Nashville Friday evening, March 2, trailing the storms that hit Alabama and Indiana.  They were deployed the next day into Alabama, then to Indiana the following Tuesday. By the time I returned to Lafayette, Jess and Davey had spent more time with me than they had in their new home in Nashville.

Stu and Carla Raynor chose to spend their first wedding anniversary serving the needs of the community in Marysville. Taylor and Marie Perez left their vacation in Florida to specifically to assist with the work in Marysville.

Lynn Crew – Vice President of BACAR Constructors in Nashville, Tennessee, is a reservist with HFI and has served overseas and in the US extensively in relief work.

Glenda and Andrew Bashor, a couple in their mid 50’s have been with Hope Force force full time for about year. Glenda’s reflection on her experience serving with The Salvation Army in Marysville follows below.

Marysville, IN Deployment

Glenda Bashor – Hope Foce International

As we watched the storm progression from our home in Franklin, TN and prepared to hunker down in our own ‘safe place’, it became very apparent we would once again be “on the road” to serving survivors in the aftermath of the widespread storms tearing through the eastern states.

Marysville, specifically because the focus had been on other larger communities, was foremost in the heart and mind of Hope Force International leadership. It wasn’t long before our pre-packed bags were being tied down in our trailer and 6 of us were on our way to Marysville.

Our relationship as a national partner with the Salvation Army opened a door wide for our service in the Marysville area.

Following our arrival, introductions and updates about the situation surrounding the small community of Marysville, then a brief survey of the area’s needs, it was determined that our initial plans would be adapted to a specific area of service.

The Salvation Army pinpointed a greater need of supporting survivors, utility workers and volunteers through a gathering place for physical and emotional rejuvenation. Thus, overseeing the feeding tent became our focus.

Hospitality has always been an important component of my husband’s and my life. To serve the needs of those involved in the recovery process through this means was an honor. Connecting with individuals on a personal level (both survivors and volunteers), while fulfilling a basic need of food (something often overlooked in times of stress), was particularly special. Gathering around food often drops barriers and allows for an openness to deeper emotional and spiritual needs of people. To me this is the heart of hospitality – reflecting the love of God and expressing the value of the individual through a tangible means.

All the volunteers were so willing, available and capable. “Greg” particularly stands out. Several hours after standing at a menial and seemingly mundane task to which he brought excellence and care, it became apparent this was not what he had come for….he’d been ready to head out to “the fields” with chain saw, shovel and other such tools. BUT, he willingly and cheerfully stood as a sentry over food preparation and holding items when requested to do so. He exemplified the heart of volunteerism ….doing what is necessary, when required, regardless of pre-conceived ideas or expectations.

The spirit of resiliency in the residents of Marysville was evident in even the elderly of the community. Sisters Marguerite and Cecile were one set of survivors reflecting their faith and hope in a loving heavenly Father, even though their home would have to be leveled. They declared His hand of protection in their lives in spite of the discomfort and displacement they were experiencing. Many others, even though still reeling from the shock of loss of home and possessions and/or reliving memories of the winds tearing through their homes and community, were pressing in to gather up, clean up and determine the next step. A community bonded together through the common ground of recovery and rebuilding.

Working with Salvation Army members is always an honor as they are often the heart and soul of serving basic needs in local communities.

For more information on Hope Force International, please visit their website at www.hopeforce.org

Sign of the Times

Clark County, IN –  Henryville-Otisco Road linking Henryville and Marysville is littered with with homes in total ruin as a result of the tornadoes that ripped through the area this past Friday. The mind fails to grasp the totality of the destruction. Nor does it fully comprehend the totality of the miraculous stories of survival.

The bare and broken branches of a tree in front of a pile of sticks and ruble where a home once stood holds a sign made by the owners who barely escaped with their lives: “God is still good.”

Indeed, God is still good! Scripture declares, “Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God (Psalm 90:2).”

WLFI, Regions Bank, Join Forces to Help Hoosiers

Updated: Saturday, 03 Mar 2012, 3:29 PM EST
Published : Saturday, 03 Mar 2012, 3:31 PM EST

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) -

WLFI is partnering with Regions Bank to help the Salvation Army’s tornado relief effort. The Salvation Army is providing food to hundreds of victims and emergency responders in southern Indiana. Major Steve Kiger, of the New Albany Salvation Army, says monetary donations are the best way to support relief efforts.

You can make a donation online, or by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY. Donations marked “Indiana Disaster Relief” can also be mailed or dropped off at the Salvation Army’s Lafayette headquarters, at 11-10 Union Street, Lafayette, 47904.

Beginning Monday, donations can also be made at all local Regions Bank branches.

Helping Victims in Southern Indiana

Clark County, IN – Late this afternoon a severe weather system produced several powerful tornadoes in the Southern Indiana counties of Clark and Washington. The worst damage was in the area of I-65 with the small town of Henryville getting most of the damage. Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Service teams from New Albany, IN were deployed as soon as it was safe to proceed into the damaged areas.

Currently, The Salvation Army is providing food for nearly 400 victims and emergency responders at the Washington County Command Center in New Pekin, IN. In Clark county, The Salvation Army is providing food for 200 people at the Red Cross shelter set-up in Charlestown High School.

In addition, The Salvation Army has dispatched canteens (mobile kitchens) to the heavily damaged town of Henryville. “Right now we’re just trying to assess what’s needed and provide support to the victims of these storms,” says Major Steve Kiger of the New Albany Salvation Army. “Our services will be changing and expanding over the next 24 hours, and we’re going to be meeting needs here for a long time.”

The quickest and easiest way to support the efforts of The Salvation Army as they serve victims is to make a monetary donation.You can make a donation ONLINE at http://donate.salvationarmyusa.org/storms or you can call 1-800-SAL-ARMY.  Cell phone users can make a $10.00 donation by texting* “storm” to 80888, to confirm your gift, respond with the word “Yes.”

Donations marked “Indiana Disaster Relief” can also be mailed or delivered in person to The Salvation Army, 1110 Union Street, Lafayette, IN 47904.