The In-Depth Overview of Services Provided to Salvation Army

History

In 1865, in London’s East End, William Booth, a one-time Methodist Reform Church minister, and his wife, Catherine Booth, founded the Salvation Army, which was then called the East London Christian Mission until 1878, when the name changed to the Salvation Army. The name ‘Salvation Army’ came to be on the 19th and 20th of May, 1878, when William Booth was dictating a letter to George Scott Railton, William Booth’s secretary and first commissioner of the Salvation Army. William Booth said while dictating the letter, “We are a volunteer army”. William Booth’s son Bramwell Booth disagreed and said, “Volunteer! I’m no volunteer, I’m a regular!” William Booth then chose not to use the word ‘volunteer’ but instead replace it with ‘salvation’. William Booth was the Salvation Army’s first general, and Catherine Booth was known as the ‘Mother of the Salvation Army’ due to her influence on the formation of the Salvation Army. 1880 marked the beginning of expansion from only working in London to other places. In 1880, the Salvation Army began work in the United States of America, Ireland, and Australia. In 1883, the Salvation Army sent Captain George Pollard and Lieutenant Edward Wright along with three Australian Salvationists to set up work in New Zealand. In 1891, a farm colony was set up in Hadleigh, Essex, England by William Booth. In 1973, the Salvation Army set up work in Fiji, and after success of establishing and consolidating the Salvation Army in Fiji, the Salvation Army began to expand more in the Pacific. Another expansion in the Pacific was work in Tonga, which began in 1985 with Fijian officers, Rebecca Inia, and Captain Tifare. To this day, expansion continues. No changes have been made to the founding morals and codes that began with William Booth and Catherine Booth.

Purpose

William Booth’s, who was one of the founders of the Salvation Army alongside his wife, Catherine Booth, motivation to start the Salvation Army was to convert the poor people of London, who were known as the ‘Submerged Tenth’ of society to Christianity and to help them physically, emotionally, spiritually, socially, and materially without discrimination in the name of God. William Booth would help the ‘Submerged Tenth’ of society, while Catherine Booth would go to the wealthy and ask for financial assistance for the Salvation Army. William Booth’s motivation for starting the Salvation Army can be understood in the three different mission statements. The international mission statement of the Salvation Army is, “The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by love for God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and meet human needs in his name without discrimination.” The mission statement of the Salvation Army New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga, and Samoa territory, “The Salvation Army is an international movement and an evangelical branch of the Christian Church, which expresses its ministry through a balance of spiritual and social dependent on God for the power to fulfil its calling. Everything it does is an offering to the glory of God and for the worship and adoration of God’s name. The brief mission statement of the Salvation Army is, “Caring for people, transforming lives and reforming society through God in Christ by the Holy Spirit’s power.” The Salvation Army still exists today for many reasons. One reason is to continue the work of William Booth and Catherine Booth, which was serving God and helping and bringing salvation to the poor. By continuing William and Catherine Booth’s work, the more people can be helped and the outcome of a better world without poverty and social and spiritual distress could be closer. The Salvation Army continue William and Catherine Booth’s work by continuing to fight poverty, help people physically, emotionally, spiritually, socially, and materially; and keep children safe. Another reason is to help more people and expand to more countries. By expanding to more countries, more people can be helped, which is what William and Catherine Booth wanted. The Salvation Army has expanded to many countries since William Booth and Catherine Booth died in 1912 and 1890 respectively. At the time of William Booth’s death, the Salvation Army was working in 58 countries, but now, the Salvation Army is working in 131 countries. This means that the Salvation Army has expanded to 73 more countries since William Booth died. The Salvation Army is continuing to expand to this day, serving William Booth, Catherine Booth, and God.

Activities

Foodbank

Salvation Army food bank hubs are places where donated food is stored to give to families in need. Food bank hubs can be found all around New Zealand, in Whangarei, Glenfield, Waitakere, Royal Oak, Manukau, Hamilton, Gisborne, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, and Dunedin. Food bank hubs were created to help people in need of food and essentials. People can donate to food banks to help families through the Foodbank Project. The Foodbank Project is a self-sustaining online shop where people can donate food and groceries to families in need. The Foodbank Project does not make a profit from foodbanks, as the Salvation Army is a non-profit charity. The Foodbank Project started in 2015 with The Salvation Army, Countdown, and Lucid working together to create an online shop where people can easily donate items. The idea was created by Lucid founder Galen King. To donate through the Foodbank Project, you select products to donate and then donate the cost of the products. After this has been completed, your selected products will be delivered to Countdown where they will be packaged with other products in parcels and given to Salvation Army food banks. The Foodbank Project was a key factor in more people donating to food bank hubs, as it made donating easier to do and easier to do on a basis. Since the launch of the Foodbank project, 6153 donors have joined in donating to food bank hubs. Schools, such as Saint Kentigern College, also donate to food banks. Salvation Army food bank hubs have impacted the lives of thousands of people’s lives all across New Zealand by helping them financially and physically. The families that are helped by the food banks can save money, as the money normally spent on groceries can be spent on other things. With the spending of money on groceries gone, families can fight poverty and get on top of their living costs. Families living in poverty who cannot afford the costs of food and groceries can rely on food bank hubs for essentials.

Addiction Rehabilitation

The Salvation Army offers addiction rehabilitation to those who need it and has been in New Zealand since 1907. The Salvation Army helps people caringly with a treatment that consists of 4 key elements. The first element is partnership. Partnership means that the patient will have a relationship with the treatment team that is purposeful on their way to sobriety. The second element using the community reinforcement approach. Community reinforcement approach means that the treatment teams goes beyond education and advice to practice and coaching. This element also incorporates the treatment team encouraging friends and family of the patient to partake in the treatment where practical. The third element is following the 12-step recovery journey. The 12-step recovery journey is a set of steps that outlines a course of action to recover from addictions. The last element is the Salvation Army. The New Zealand Salvation Army offers ‘evidence-based, best practice treatment’ to people who are affected negatively from their abuse of substances such as alcohol and drugs to show their love and concern of God and the people of the community. The Salvation Army’s addiction treatments have been proven to be very successful, as their outcomes of their patients have matched outcomes of patients of leading international treatment programmes. The addiction rehabilitation offered by the Salvation Army has impacted the people it helps in many ways. One way is by improving the patient’s physical and mental health. By being sober after rehabilitation, your skin, eyes, and hair will clear, you will have better sleep, you will have more energy, your memory will improve, your mental clarity will be enhanced, your self-esteem will improve, and you will have a lesser chance of contracting mental issues. Another way that the rehabilitation offered by the Salvation Army impacts the people it helps is helping people financially. With the costs of purchasing drugs or alcohol removed when people enter and finish rehabilitation, people can save money, which is good for many reasons. One last way that the rehabilitation impacts people is the reduction in criminal activity. In many cases, people will break the law to gain money to spend on drugs and alcohol, so by the Salvation army offering rehabilitation to people in need of it, they are reducing people’s criminal activity, as the rehabilitated people would no longer need to break the law to gain money to spend on drugs and alcohol.

Emergency Services

The Salvation Army provide emergency services that are comprised of staff and volunteers that work alongside Civil Defence and local councils to help after natural disasters, help with search and rescue missions, and other emergencies. Three different kinds of support provided by the Salvation Army are welfare, emergency accommodation, and post-disaster aid and counselling. Providing welfare means to provide things such as clothing, furniture, and food to people in need of it after an emergency and natural disaster, as the people may not have access to those things. Providing emergency accommodation means to provide housing to those who need a place to stay after a natural disaster or any other emergency situation. People might not have a place to stay after a natural disaster like a hurricane, meaning that they need a place to stay. Providing post-disaster aid and counselling means to provide assistance during and after a natural disaster and counselling to those who need it after a disaster if they need mental help. Assisting people during and after a disaster includes providing food and drinks from a Salvation Army mobile feeding unit to survivors and emergency workers, providing medical care to people who require it, responsibly collecting donations and goods and efficiently distributing it, and using the Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network, which is a worldwide network of novice volunteers and communications specialists, to send emergency information during a disaster. The Salvation Army provides counselling to those mentally affected by natural disasters and other emergencies. Counselling is provided because counselling can help people get through and navigate through tough times. Emergency services impact the people it helps in many ways. One way is saving lives. Providing emergency services can save lives in many ways, such as providing food, shelter, and medical aid; and by saving lives, the are impacting people positively. Another way emergency services impacts people is getting people back onto their feet. When disaster strikes and people’s homes are destroyed, emergency services provide accommodation until the people can find a home. Another way emergency services impact people is improving the mental state of people through counselling. This is important because if people are not in a good mental state, then their life will be impacted negatively in many ways, such as not being able to take care of them selves properly, not able to adapt to changes well, not being able to be productive, and not being to cope with adversity.

Court and Prison Services

The Salvation Army provides court and prison services to defendants as well as victims, family of the defendants or victims, supporters, and witnesses. The Salvation Army chaplains are the ones who provide the services and emotional support in a non-judgemental manner and are available in the majority of major courts and in a few prisons. The chaplains provide service to those in need of it in many ways, such explaining court procedures and decisions, getting information, directing people to the correct courtroom, suggesting places to receive legal advice, arranging transport, food, counselling, court-ordered alcohol and drug assessments, community service opportunities, and places to stay for people; offering a Christian support fellowship, and give advice on visiting hours and transport. All of these services provided by the chaplains impact the people the chaplains help by making sure that the people do not feel frightened or threatened, are in a good mental state, have someone to talk to so they can calm down and express their thoughts and emotions, understand what to do, and share their problems. Sharing problems is very important because when you share a problem, the problem becomes easier to deal with. People are also impacted by chaplains and the services they provide by being led onto a better path by the chaplains. The chaplains are there to provide services and lead people away from a bad life.

Family Support

The Salvation Army provides family support if it is required. Providing family support involves providing many things, including budgeting advice, parenting assistance, childhood assistance, employment training, furnishings, and family stores. Providing budgeting advice includes acknowledging any addictions, as having drug or alcohol addictions can be costly. Parenting assistance includes family mentoring from the Salvation Army, counselling, and the teaching of life skills to families. Childhood assistance includes putting children into playgroups, music and gym groups, early childhood centres, and youth programmes. Putting children into these environments is done to help children with troubled pasts reach their full potential and face challenges with confidence. Employment training provides people who are disadvantaged experience, abilities, and confidence, and opportunities to seek occupations and careers. The Salvation Army supplies people with donated furnishings and furniture to those who need it. Family stores are stores where people donate things like furniture, goods, and clothing for free so others can buy them at a lowered, accessible price. All of these things provided by the Salvation Army impact the families it helps in many ways. One way is buy impacting people’s financial state. Some people may not know how to use their money wisely, as they might have a gambling addiction, which is why receiving budgeting advice to learn how to properly use money can impact people positively. Another way that family support impacts people is unlocking children’s potential and giving them a good start to life. Some families who may feel that they need help with their parenting and children and receive the assistance from the Salvation Army are giving the children a good start to life which they might not have had if the Salvation Army did not assist. Employment training impacts families by helping them receive income. The Salvation Army give job opportunities to disadvantaged people, allowing them to make money which they might not make if they didn’t have the opportunity of a job, meaning that their family wouldn’t make money. Donated furnishings and family stores impact people by giving them access to things like clothing and furniture at an accessible price, meaning that they spend less money on these things so that they can save, budget, and spend on other essential things, which is especially good for those less fortunate. Overall, family support impacts families by giving them a life that benefits the entire family in different ways.