29 minute read
A Word of Thanks
One single expression can be the key to facing perilous times.
by Phil Callaway
Whoever said, “May you live in interesting times” certainly got his wish.
During March of 2020, peace and comfort were in shorter supply than toilet paper. Ramona and I selfquarantined and, after praying at breakfast together, I tried to think up something to make her laugh.
One day, I said, “Honey, you’ve always been there for me. During the energy crisis of the ’70s, we met. During the recession of the ’80s, we married. We weathered Y2K together. And the crash of 2008. And the Great TP Shortage of 2020. And now here we are hunkered down indoors, two metres apart, together. I may be wrong, but I think you’re bad luck.”
Thankfully, she laughed. That laugh is one of a hundred things I’m grateful for in times like these.
Devilish Memo According to several studies, anxiety and gratitude have trouble co-existing in the human brain. I mentioned this to friends, and they said things such as: “I’m thankful for a slower pace.” “Time with family.” “Church this morning in our jammies.”
In C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters, a senior devil sends letters to
Lovebirds Ramona Callaway’s laugh is one of a hundred things her husband, Phil Callaway, is grateful for in times like these
his evil understudy.
“Plagues are a most effective weapon,” the senior devil writes. “Normally, Christians are quite comfortable. But if you can stir up hysteria by means of a plague so that they cut themselves off from God’s gifts to them, the torment of isolation will drive them to despair. Get them to forget about their usual practices of prayer and alms-giving, thinking only about themselves. Storing up treasures that we can send moth and rust to destroy.”
Thankful Word During the challenges of these difficult times, my friend, James, put one word on a Post-it note and stuck it to his nightstand. He sees it before he flips off the light. It’s there when he wakes in the morning. It says: “Thankful.”
Like nothing else, this is the key to facing perilous times. It produces the peace and abiding joy of knowing that God is at work in us, even in the hard days.
The Psalmist wrote, “I will give thanks to You, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonderful deeds” (Psalm 9:1).
In 1 Chronicles 16:34 we read, “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.”
Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Counting One’s Blessings I asked my Facebook friends what they were thankful for in these difficult times.
Elaine said, “I’m thankful for hot water and soap.”
This is from Carrie: “I miss my job, but I’m thankful for more time with family!”
Shirley says, “Life, salvation, family, friends, health—and your humour, too.”
John said, “I’m thankful for a faithful God of amazing grace. When I became an invalid, unable to walk, I found out I have more friends than I knew. They don’t consider me a burden; they are honoured to serve the weaker vessel.”
Belinda, who battles multiple sclerosis, says, “The forever hope that comes from my faith and belief in Jesus.”
Enid said, “So glad that God assures us of His love. We have His Word and His promises.”
And what do I count when I count my blessings? Food. My next breath. We didn’t hoard a thing and we still had enough toilet paper. I’m thankful for FaceTime with grandkids. The chance to share God’s love with others. The hope of eternity with Jesus. And I’m thankful I went into the bank this morning with a mask on. And wasn’t arrested.
More Than a Football Player
Stepping Up “What Josh McCown brings to the table, even as a No. 4 quarterback, is inarguable,” said Michael Blinn of the New York Post
The NFL’s Josh McCown is not getting older, he’s getting better.
by Jayne Thurber-Smith
In the Philadelphia Eagles’ wild-card game last year, Josh McCown became the oldest quarterback to make his post-season debut. At the age of 40, he strode into the huddle to replace an injured Carson Wentz.
“McCown, seemingly putting his entire body into every throw, made some strikes and managed the offense. The backup, however, couldn’t do enough with decimated weaponry that has plagued the Eagles all season,” wrote NFL writer Kevin Patra.
That’s Gonna Hurt It was later disclosed that Josh had torn his hamstring off the bone in the second quarter, but that didn’t stop him.
“My injury happened early in the game,” he remembers, “but in the moment, there are so many other things going through your mind other than the pain. With our situ-
Photos: Courtesy of the Philadelphia Eagles
ation what it was, there was no one else to step in, so I played through it. The adrenaline rush helped. It felt a lot different by 11 that night, though!”
Although the Eagles came up short that night, Josh kept his team in the game the entire time, giving his all on the biggest stage of his career.
“I did my best to help the team,” he says, “and we all fought hard. Coach Doug Pederson and my teammates helped me stay calm. I felt ready for the opportunity, because when you’re helping other guys prepare like I did with Carson, there’s an internalization of the game plan that you benefit from.
“Plus, I’ve done football a long time.”
From Starter to Backup And for a lot of teams. Drafted in 2002 by the Arizona Cardinals, Josh has played for 11 different NFL teams and, in 2010, played a season in the United Football League. At that time, he didn’t know for sure if his NFL days were over or not.
“That was one of the critical moments for both my wife, Natalie, and me,” he recalls. “Looking back on it, I compare it to the Bible story of David hiding in the cave, after living in the palace. The world as you know it has changed. You’re reasoning with God and spending a lot of
Walking With God “I knew I could do all things through Christ, no matter what team I was on,” says Josh
time learning about who you really are.”
During that season, Josh never gave up hope. He did wonder if it might be time to start looking in a few directions other than pro football, however.
“I got more involved in my church, trying to keep busy at first, and then I found peace connecting with God,” he says. “I believe that allowed me to play at a higher level, and I’m thank-
ful I did get to return to the NFL the next year.”
With only a year here and there with each team, it was hard to hang on to starting quarterback status. That can be tough on a guy who loves being in the game.
“It’s frustrating to go from starter to backup, but both positions can contribute to any game,” Josh says. “I embrace that, rather than focusing on not playing. No matter the role, when you’re a part of a team, you bring value every day. It helps when you know your identity as a person, because I know I’m more than a football player.”
Ups, Downs and Sideways With all the relocating from town to town, Josh greatly valued the support he always found on the home front from his wife and four children.
“I appreciate Natalie first and foremost for the type of person she is,” he says. “I didn’t always move my family with me whenever I ended up on a new team, especially those last seven years when the kids were older. Natalie ran our home so well and always kept us organized. Giving me the peace to just go play was huge. I’m thankful for her management of our home and support of me.”
Josh grew up in a Christian home, but early on in their relationship, he and Natalie made their faith their own rather than a hand-me-down.
“In the beginning, we had a faith background, but not to the degree we have now,” he says. “We knew
A Quarterbacking Family Josh is the older brother of former NFL quarterback Luke McCown and younger brother of former Texas A&M quarterback Randy McCown
we needed to decide how we would walk it out for ourselves and what was going to be different for us. That included developing more of a personal relationship with God. We wanted it to be real, and we made faith an important part of our home.”
Another important part of their home is a room filled with echoes of Josh’s journeyman career. Natalie had every one of his team jerseys framed and that takes up a whole lot of wall space. They are a testament to the ups and downs and sideways turns Josh was able to experience with God’s help.
Walking With God Just before the 2020 NFL season started up, the Eagles announced that Josh would be wearing their
Team Player Josh has spent most of his career as a journeyman quarterback, playing for 11 teams
jersey for another year.
“Josh McCown, who came out of retirement last season to sign with Philadelphia, will become the oldest practice squad player in NFL history at the age of 41. What McCown brings to the table, even as a No. 4 quarterback, is inarguable,” said Michael Blinn of the New York Post.
“I really like the verse Philippians 4:13: ‘I can do all things through Christ,’ ” Josh says. “In the context of what Paul was saying in the previous verses, about being content with having a little or a lot, it’s very meaningful to me. It’s all about learning how to walk with God in any situation. That’s something I identified with early on in my career. I knew I could do all things through Christ, no matter what team I was on.”
On-Screen Salvation
ARMY IN COBOURG, ONT., SUPPORTS NEWCOMERS TO CANADA. by Caroline Franks
Strangers in a New Land Eduardo and his family are grateful to The Salvation Army for the help they received
As newcomers to Canada, a family from Ecuador is adjusting to life in a new country with support from The Salvation Army in Cobourg, Ont. Internet Search Eduardo, his wife and two young children, who are one and four years old, arrived in Canada in early December 2019.
“One of the first challenges we had was the weather,” says Eduardo. “We were not used to the cold but in time we started to learn more about the country, and we really like the environment and its people.”
Because the family had not yet received a work visa, they struggled financially and didn’t know where to go for help. The COVID-19 pandemic also delayed the processing of their immigration documents.
“After a few months, we learned about The Salvation Army, who helped us a lot,” says Eduardo. “One day, we were searching the internet to learn more about Canada and The Salvation Army appeared on our screen.”
Courteous Treatment The Salvation Army in Cobourg is there for anyone in their time of need.
“We are providing the family with both physical and emotional support,” states Edward Nkyi, community and family services director at The Salvation Army in Cobourg. “If we don’t have the means to help, then we partner with another local agency to make sure we can.”
“As a newcomer family of Canada, The Salvation Army has assisted us with rent and utility payments, immigration information assistance, food vouchers, gas cards and so much more,” says Eduardo. “The people at The Salvation Army have a true heart. They are humble and have helped us a lot. We are very thankful. Their treatment toward our family has been courteous and all of them are very amiable.”
“A Big Thank You” Until they receive a work permit, Eduardo and his wife cannot work or volunteer. Eduardo is an engineer with experience in the automotive industry and is anxious to begin working. His wife is taking English classes to help her settle into the community.
“We knew there was a lot we could do for the family. We helped them put food on the table and connected them to local resources,” says Edward.
Eduardo and his wife want what all families do, to provide for their children, to send them to school and to have opportunities open to them.
“Our family is really happy. Life in Canada is very different. Here, there is a lot of safety for my family,” says Eduardo. “A big thank you to the amazing team of staff and volunteers at The Salvation Army in Cobourg.”
Gateway to Healing
A SALVATION ARMY FACILITY HELPED JASON BASS-MELDRUM FIND HIS PASSION. by Melissa Yue Wallace
THE START OF THE SCHOOL
year in Ontario was fraught with worry for families and teaching staff alike, with many parents making last-minute changes to avoid packed classrooms or, alternatively, an online environment. But while some students were being reassigned out of schools, Jason Bass-Meldrum, a nurse with Toronto Public Health, was preparing to go in.
A Changed Trajectory As a COVID-19 school liaison public health nurse for East Toronto, Jason is responsible for 14 schools, where he meets with principals to ensure pandemic protocols are being followed, links cases with investigators and deals with outbreaks.
It’s a role that requires flexibility and calm, one he has been well-equipped for over his 12-year career—assisting new Canadians experiencing hardship, and people suffering with bed bugs, living in squalor without health insurance, affected by tuberculosis and, most recently, isolated because of COVID-19.
“I started following health-care workers and high-risk individuals who had COVID-19 through daily phone calls, and I felt God had put me in a place where I had the opportunity for great one-on-one conversations,” says Jason. “I don’t often lead with my background, but if a client opens up that door, I can talk about my faith and, more often than not, it will lead to an opportun-
Photos: Justin Jasmins Photography
On Duty “I’ve learned that if you sit with people and genuinely treat them as a person, giving them respect and dignity, you can get all the information you need for their care, and they feel valued,” says Jason Bass-Meldrum of his job as a public health nurse
One Happy Family Jason and Heather with their three children: Josiah, Grace and Elizabeth
ity to share the gospel, pray for and encourage them.”
With his easygoing demeanour and empathetic personality, Jason puts clients at ease, telling stories and sharing experiences they can relate to.
It’s a skill set he developed while working at The Salvation Army Gateway, a 120-bed emergency shelter and drop-in for individuals experiencing homelessness in Toronto, where he worked from 2002 to 2010.
“I learned in the first few weeks that I couldn’t chalk up somebody as looking a certain way when they’re experiencing homelessness,” he says. “One moment in time can change the trajectory of someone’s life.”
Jason should know. He was in Grade 10 when his life took just such a turn.
Losing Everything Jason’s parents worked hard to provide for their four children while living in an apartment in Scarborough, Ont. Jason’s dad worked at Canada Post and his mother worked odd jobs from time to time. They didn’t have a lot of money, but his parents invested in their children’s faith, putting all four in Christian school.
In 1991, after his grandmother had a fall, Jason’s parents decided to renovate her semi-detached home so the whole family could move in and help take care of her. But that decision would cost the family in more ways than one.
“Over the next 10 years, my parents would lose everything financially as the home sat as a building lot,” says Jason. Their life savings were depleted, and things worsened when his dad was hit on the picket line during the 1991 Canada Post strike. He didn’t qualify for the Ontario Disability Support Program, and the family ended up on social assistance. Jason and his siblings left their Christian school to start fresh at a public school.
“The only good thing about that year was that on Christmas, The Salvation Army brought a gift basket and each of us kids had a $50 gift voucher to what was then Woolco (now Walmart),” says Jason. “I have very fond memories of that.”
From Tyndale to Gateway Jason didn’t always aspire to be a nurse. When he was a child, he read books about David Livingstone and
“I had this profound thought as I was sitting at the table that, if there was any place that Jesus would be, it would be at The Gateway.” JASON BASS-MELDRUM
dreamed of serving as a medical missionary. He attended the University of Guelph in 1995 with this dream in mind, but found it shattered as his depression about unresolved family and relationship issues resulted in failing grades. He eventually graduated with a biology degree.
Unsure of next steps, Jason enrolled at Tyndale University in Toronto, hoping to teach in some capacity. A friend of Jason’s was working at The Gateway and told him to consider applying.
Over and Above Dion Oxford, former director of The Gateway, remembers hiring Jason and being encouraged by his servant heart and genuine care for people in need.
“He focused on finding out more about who they were as human beings, what their gifts were and how we could walk alongside them to draw out their strengths,” says Dion. “He went over and above the call.
“I knew whatever he would end up doing, he would give 100 percent of his gifts to being the presence of Christ in the best way he knew how.”
“I started as a casual front-line relief worker, and those first couple of shifts, I wondered what I had gotten myself into,” Jason says. “But then I had this profound thought as I was sitting at the table that, if there was any place that Jesus would be, from what I know in my head and from Scripture, it would be here.”
A Dream Revived While working at The Gateway, Jason listened to stories the men shared about their plight into homelessness and was touched by their vulnerability. Since The Gateway sat in a catchment area for services, a community health centre provided a nurse who would come in twice a week to care for men at the
Embracing Happiness While walking to class at Tyndale University, Jason clearly heard God’s voice. “All I could see was the back of Heather and I heard the Lord saying, ‘You’re going to marry her,’ ” he says
shelter. Jason recalls watching the nurse addressing the men’s physical needs, usually wound dressings and medication monitoring.
“A lot of individuals on the streets are, unfortunately, victims of violence or participate in violence, so they may be discharged from hospitals with staples or stitches and need to get them removed,” he says. “Wounds don’t heal very well when you’re not in a clean environment.”
Jason became interested in nursing and realized that, with his biology background, he could care for people in a way that would allow him to demonstrate compassion and be present with people.
“I found that maybe this dream wasn’t so lost,” he says. “God was leading me.”
Jason enrolled in nursing college, graduated and has been working ever since. He also pursues his passion for teaching in his roles as a clinical instructor at various universities and colleges.
“I’ve learned that if you sit with people and genuinely treat them as a person, giving them respect and dignity, you can get all the information you need for their care, and they feel valued,” says Jason. “And just as we engage with others on a daily basis, we need to engage with God, and it will equip us to not burn out and have the most impact for Jesus.”
Ready to Rumble
NEW MOVIE IS BILLED AS BIGGEST UNDERDOG STORY EVER. WELL, DAVID AND HIS SLINGSHOT MIGHT HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT THAT. by Diane Stark
Photos: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
Rumble, in theatres this month, is a computer-animated comedy from Paramount Animation and WWE Studios starring WWE superstars Becky Lynch and Roman Reigns. The film is set in a world where monsters are professional athletes and watching them compete is a favourite pastime for humans.
Overcoming the Odds A new global sport has emerged: Monster Wrestling. Everyone wants a piece of the action, including Steve (voiced by Will Arnett), a clumsy, out-of-shape, giant reptilian monster. He’s an amateur wrestler whose deepest longing is to go pro and become a champion. Winnie (Geraldine Viswanathan) is a teenager who aspires to be a monster wrestling trainer, just like her dad. The unlikely pair team up, and their training regimen is as unusual as they are. To build his strength, Winnie brings in a female monster who easily outweighs Steve
Training Day Winnie believes Steve has what it takes to be the champ
and demands that the two practise and perfect the famous lift scene from the ’80s hit, Dirty Dancing.
To become a champion, Steve will have to beat the reigning champ, Tentacular (Terry Crews), a sharkheaded monster with six tentacles and popping pectoral muscles. The human fans worship him. At the giant Monster Wrestling stadium, the announcer asks, “Is there a challenger out there with the hunger, the drive and the discipline to become the next champion?”
Steve doesn’t think that he has any of those things, but Winnie is sure enough for both of them. In his match against Tentacular, Steve will be the biggest underdog Monster Wrestling has ever seen.
Can he overcome the odds to beat Tentacular and become the new champion?
Come-From-Behind Win There’s a saying that everyone loves an underdog. That might be true after the big upset, but before an underdog wins, most people doubt that person and some even mock him or her. Being the underdog isn’t usually the most favourable position to be in when entering a contest of any kind, but especially one where the fight is to the death.
Probably the most famous underdog story is the one about David and Goliath. The Bible says that Goliath’s height was six cubits and a span—almost nine feet tall (see 1 Samuel 17). For 40 days, he and his fellow Philistines taunted the Israelite army, asking who would fight him. The stakes could not have been higher. Not only would the loser die, but his fellow soldiers would become slaves to the winners.
The Israelites were terrified. But a young shepherd named David overheard them talking about Goliath and declared that he could defeat him. When David’s oldest brother, Eliab, heard him, he got angry and told David he needed to stay with his sheep. He was the ultimate underdog, even in his own family.
David fought Goliath—and won— with a slingshot and five smooth stones.
Top Dog But was that slingshot his only weapon? David told Goliath, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied” (1 Samuel 17:45). David added, “The battle is the Lord’s.”
David didn’t look at how much taller and stronger Goliath was. David didn’t compare Goliath’s sword and spear to his own slingshot. David trusted God to go before him in the battle. David, on his own, was the biggest underdog in history. But with God on his side, he was the top dog, destined to win. More Than Conquerors We all have our own underdog story, a time when we didn’t see a way to come out on top. It could be a story of beating an addiction or a life-threatening illness. It might even be persevering at school in spite of financial or personal difficulties. Or it could be a challenge in marriage or parenting.
When we find ourselves as underdogs, it’s easy to become fearful and doubt that God is with us. It’s easy to look at that Goliath in front of us instead of the God who goes before us. But Romans 8:31 says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”
The world might view us as underdogs, but as the Bible tells us in Romans 8:37, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”
King of the Ring In the history of Monster Wrestling, there has never been a champion quite like Tentacular
Faith&Friends
BEYOND BORDERS
Doing Good in Zambia
A video project in Africa gave me a new appreciation for the international work of The Salvation Army.
by Aaron Bowes
Photos: Courtesy of Aaron Bowes
On one of the last days of our campaign resource gathering visit to Zambia, our Salvation Army film crew wandered onto a field where a soccer match was going on. No fancy cleats on display, no team jerseys. Just kids of all ages kicking a threadbare ball around in joyous abandon.
As we were setting up to shoot some footage, a man started to march
Zooming In Aaron Bowes sets up a shot for an interview at Salvation Army headquarters in Lusaka, Zambia
toward us, obviously not liking the fact that we were going to film his friends. But his intimidating manner evaporated when he saw the Army shield on our jackets. “Oh, Salvation Army,” he smiled. “You’re free to come in here whenever.”
It was at that moment that it hit me: everywhere in Zambia, people understand the good The Salvation Army is doing.
faithandfriends.ca I
SEPTEMBER 2020 • 5
Faith&Friends
BEYOND BORDERS
A Joyful Noise Salvation Army soldiers at the Army’s Livingstone Corps in Zambia
African Adventure As a Salvation Army digital media producer, I was asked to accompany a team from the world missions department on a fact-finding trip to Zambia earlier this year. I would help film a dozen or so videos that would highlight the Army’s work there.
While I was nervous about protocols for filming in public overseas, I was also excited to go as I’d never been to Africa before. Conversations with colleagues who had been on such trips before put my mind at ease.
Though the 30-hour trip from Toronto to Zambia’s capital, Lusaka, via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was long, I couldn’t wait to start work. Lt-Colonel Brenda Murray, director of world missions and our team leader, told me later that I always seemed to have a grin on my face. And I did!
For me, it was more of an adventure than work, despite the gruelling 16-hour-a-day pace we set for ourselves.
Earned Respect Every day was an early start because we had four to five shooting locations on our agenda, each one telling a tale of the Army’s work. We’d assemble at the hotel breakfast bar, and the team would look to me for the overall shooting plan.
While we had a vague idea of who we were interviewing, once we got to the location, whether in a rural farm area or an inner-city informal settlement, we never knew who would show up or what was in store. But we stuck to the itinerary and everything worked out.
One of the places we visited was a Salvation Army church deep in the inner city of Lusaka, where we were privileged to take part in a church service. We also toured an Army-run
6 • SEPTEMBER 2020
I faithandfriends.ca
Back to the Beginning How thrilling it was to read the article about The Salvation Army in Zambia (“Doing Good in Zambia,” September 2020). It is encouraging to see the spontaneity of worship and the overwhelming desire to make God’s love known. How my heart was moved to see again the territory where my wife and I began our ministry as Salvation Army pastors. —Lt-Colonel Lloyd Hetherington
Faith&Friends
COVER STORY
One Strand at a Time
WITH THE HELP OF THE SALVATION ARMY, HUMAN-TRAFFICKING SURVIVOR VICTORIA MORRISON IS PUTTING HER LIFE BACK TOGETHER. by Shannon Wise
LOOKING AT VICTORIA
Morrison now, you would never know she fell victim to human trafficking. She is as strong and confident as they come—living proof that you can take your life back and transform despite your circumstances. Victoria is articulate, poised and resilient. It’s because of her powerful traits that Victoria has been able to help other victims. But there was a time when she was a victim herself.
16 • SEPTEMBER 2020
I faithandfriends.ca Speaking Out Victoria Morrison shares her story at The Salvation Army’s annual Hope in the City breakfast in Winnipeg last fall
faithandfriends.ca I
SEPTEMBER 2020 • 17
Rebuilding a Life Victoria, you are a brave, courageous young lady (“One Strand at a Time,” September 2020). Thank God for saving you from your oppressor and setting you free to be the beautiful person you are today. God really cares and loves us just the way we are, even in our brokenness. He can mend our broken dreams. —Major Darlene Sutton
Thank you for sharing your story. I will continue to pray for those who are trafficked, to escape and rebuild their lives. —Colonel Ann Copple
Have a comment on any articles you have read? WRITE to us at Faith & Friends, 2 Overlea Blvd., Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M4H 1P4. EMAIL us at faithandfriends@ salvationarmy.ca or POST your comments at faithandfriends.ca.
Faith&Friends
FEATURE
Packed to the Brim Sandy Blackwell with her car full of donations
Piece by Piece
LORRAINE BLUE KNEW THE SALVATION ARMY NEEDED HELP DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, SO SHE DID SOMETHING ABOUT IT. by Ken Ramstead
This past spring, Lorraine Blue was watching a Salvation Army commercial appealing for help with COVID-19. Sitting there in her living room, she thought, In the middle of this crazy world, what can I do right now, as one person, to help?
It was simplicity itself to pick up her phone and make a donation, which she did. Team Effort But the next day, the thought persisted. Lorraine knew that there must be more she could do to help. But what? at afternoon, as she was passing Bailey’s Home Hardware store in Toronto, it hit her: “I’m sure that the Army is feeding a lot more people now thanks to COVID-19. ey must need more food.”
16 • AUGUST 2020
I faithandfriends.ca
On a whim, she entered the store and found out that they had 400 packages of low-fat bran muffi n mix (each package makes 24 muffi ns) plus 280 large cans of vanilla icing that were nearing their expiration dates in a month, though the manager assured her that they would keep for much longer. Lorraine promptly purchased the lot, and when the Home Hardware manager found out why she was buying them, he gave her a steep discount. Home Hardware staff even helped her place the boxes in her car.
Lorraine’s next step was to contact e Salvation Army’s divisional headquarters in Toronto to fi nd out how she could donate all this food. e automated answering service frustrated her eff orts, as she knew no one there, but after randomly pressing buttons in hopes of connecting to a “live” person, she managed to reach Vivienne So, a manager in employee relations.
“I was moved by her story,” Vivienne says, “and I wanted to see this donation put to good use.”
But she had only been on the job for six months and wasn’t sure what the protocol was.
“I didn’t feel right to just say ‘wrong number’ or pass her along,” Vivienne says, “so I decided to take care of this myself.”
After a number of inquiries, Vivienne was directed to the Army’s Railside distribution centre and passed on their contact information to a happy Lorraine.
She, in turn, loaded her car up and drove to the Railside facility with the purchased and donated supplies.
“ e staff at e Salvation Army were so amazing,” says Lorraine. “Between Home Hardware and Railside, it was a team eff ort.”
Kindred Souls Lorraine’s vision grew. “I realized I was not just helping those who were out of work due to COVID-19,” she says. “I was assisting others that the Army was looking out for: the homeless, the seniors, the disabled.”
When she returned to purchase
Happy Work A Bailey’s Home Hardware worker helps unpack a donated skid
faithandfriends.ca I
AUGUST 2020 • 17
Mixing Joy It’s wonderful to read of this generous initiative in my home city of Toronto (“Piece by Piece,” August 2020). Our Salvation Army church’s food bank has distributed this muffin mix as well as the other items mentioned. Thank you to the donors. —Lt-Colonel Jean Moulton
Faith&Friends
COVER STORY
Photo: Caroline Franks
16 • OCTOBER 2020
I faithandfriends.ca A Week With Major Ann
MY SEVEN DAYS ASSISTING IN A SALVATION ARMY LONG-TERM CARE FACILITY DURING COVID-19 CHANGED MY LIFE. by Major Jim Mercer
THE CALL CAME LATE ONE
Friday evening this past spring from Salvation Army public-relations director Glenn van Gulik.
Salvation Army long-term care facilities were dealing as best they could with the COVID-19 crisis, but the hard-working staff needed assistance.
“Is there any way you can help?” Glenn asked.
(left) Sacred Trust "I will never regard my calling as simply preaching on Sunday anymore," says Major Jim Mercer
faithandfriends.ca I
OCTOBER 2020 • 17
A Week in the Life Thank you for sharing this, Major Jim (“A Week With Major Ann,” October 2020). She was “Mrs. Murray” to me as a young member of the Salvation Army choir and vacation Bible schooler and eventually “Ann” in adulthood. I was never worried that Ann would receive the best care available at her final earthly home. Her son, John, described to me the unbelievable arrival of Salvation Army pastors at her facility—so giving, so generous. Thank you to you and your other fellow pastors and nurses for being with “Major Ann.” —Stuart Westcott
It is so wonderful to have read of your experience with long-term care patients. I have seen and been involved with this work for many years prior, and now as a nurse, I know it’s very humbling and hard work, but extremely rewarding. God can use us however we allow Him to. God bless. —Cathy Harris
