• Christopher Priest

The Salvation Army Continually Serving During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Atlanta, GA: The Salvation Army continues to strive to meet human need in His name without discrimination, even as the COVID-19 pandemic rages around the globe. In the Southern Territory, the work takes on many iterations, with service to communities everywhere.

In Richmond, Virginia, The Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club on R Street has been converted into a shelter specifically accommodating those most vulnerable. With other local shelters at near capacity, The Salvation Army was able to purchase new cots, linens, supplies and food, with the help of a grant from the COVID-19 response fund to maintain the new venue. In addition, The Salvation Army will begin a new meal delivery program next week, with the plan to deliver 1,200 meals each Wednesday to police officers, fire and rescue workers, and hospital workers in the region.

A weekly drive-thru food service is in place in Albany, Georgia, with The Salvation Army distributing assistance in a community that is considered a hotspot for COVID-19. Non-perishable food items, fresh fruit and vegetables, pastries and more are distributed in boxed form, with each box able to feed up to four people for three meals per day. With the local school system ceasing lunch service for students, the demand is heightened, and more than 1,000 meal boxes have already been dispersed.

While closed to normal operation since March 23, The Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club of Orange County, Texas is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic through targeted contact with member families. Each family is contacted at least once per week through program and/or food delivery, with members receiving program packets or care packages through delivery to their homes. Staff is intentional about contacting members to assess their specific needs and, in a continuance of an after-school funding program, meals and snacks are also delivered, with an open line of communication persisting.

Continuing a Blog Post written by Brad Rowland, Staff Writer, Southern Spirit Newspaper