Delivering hope every day - Salvos Crisis Partner Report Back 2022

WINTER 2022

Delivering hope every day.

Your report from the Salvos and the people you help.

Inside: how you... …gave Jennifer a way back in …relieved isolation for older Australians …changed a young mum’s life …got people through the floods

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MESSAGE FROM NEIL VENABLES

My dear friend, I want to take this opportunity to share with you the meaningful impact your Crisis Partner support is having on The Salvation Army mission and personally thank you for delivering hope every day to Australians in their time of need.

Despite facing disasters, impacts due to COVID-19, and the consequent uncertainty we all experience, we come together as a community to face these challenges.

Your support has had a significant impact on the lives of tens of thousands of people who look to The Salvation Army for support each year. It tells a story of unwavering generosity and compassion that has given strength to those who have had an extremely challenging year.

You answered our call to help those experiencing domestic violence. Within these pages, you will see how your compassion is helping so many women find a way back in, from the devastation and despair caused by abuse and violence at home.

You will also see the important role you played during disasters and crises and helping families and individuals in need.

When our emergency services teams were responding all around the country, you were right there with them – providing shelter, warm meals and hope in times of crisis. We couldn’t do it without you!

The Salvation Army’s vision is a powerful one.

We remain committed to helping those in need.

Wherever there is hardship or injustice, Salvos will live, love and fight, alongside others, to transform Australia one life at a time with the love of Jesus.

God Bless you,

Neil Venables (Lieutenant-Colonel) The Salvation Army

Thank you for your amazing support.

Every year with profound generosity by supporters like you, Salvos programs and services support more than 300,000 marginalised and disadvantaged Australians - regardless of their crisis. Jennifer’s story is but one example.

Jennifer was so desperate to escape her abusive partner, she did so in spite of having no income and no support network. But thanks to caring people like you, The Salvation Army welcomed her with open arms.

As she says, “I got to the Salvos shelter and I thought ‘… God helps me, I’m so lucky.”

Thanks to you, Jennifer found safety, support, accomodation, food and fresh clean clothing within 24hours of her first call to the Salvos. Most importantly, for the first time in a long time, she knew someone cared.

YOUR CRISIS PARTNER IMPACT

“I feel like my voice could be heard,” she says. “It’s not just about material things, it’s about the thoughtfulness behind them. It’s made me feel like I’m not alone and that I’m being cared for.”

For many women, a Salvos shelter is a short-term solution in a crisis, but Jennifer’s situation meant she needed to stay for longer. As she explains, “Due to COVID there were long delays with the court case against my ex-partner, and the Salvos were helping me with legal assistance and many other things, so I stayed for over a year.”

There’s no time limit to the support you help us provide. Together we stand alongside people like Jennifer for as long as it takes, while they recover from trauma and rebuild their lives.

“The Salvation Army is a Christian charity, but they help all kinds of people… any race, any background and any religion. They give you support no matter who you are.”

– Jennifer

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Thanks to Salvos supporters like you, Jennifer is continuing her journey of recovery and working to build a secure future. In fact, volunteering to cook for other residents has inspired her to pursue a career in hospitality.

“Everything that I have today is thanks to the Salvos and their supporters.

Without them I’d probably be staying on the street,” she says.

Every day across Australia, your kindness is having the same transformational impact in people’s lives. Thank you for believing in our work. Thank you for walking alongside those suffering hardship and misfortune. You are our greatest inspiration, and their greatest source of hope.

Thanks to you, every year we assist around

5,800

women and children, at risk of, or experiencing, domestic and family violence or homelessness.

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SAFETY, STABILITY AND HOPE

Thank you for helping Gemma find a way back in.

Gemma had a happy life, but it was torn apart when her partner lost his job during the first lockdown. First he turned to drugs, then he became abusive and violent, even threatening the baby. Today, Gemma wants to thank you for helping her in her hour of greatest need…

I truly believe that support like yours saved mine and Lily’s lives. Being given a safe place that was ours to call home was the difference between our survival and not.

I am a completely different person today, and I credit that to the support I’ve received from the Salvos. Which I know would not be possible without your generosity.

I have bawled my eyes out a thousand times because I’ve felt so blessed by the understanding of

The Salvation Army, and the generosity of supporters like you.

You’ve given me a sense of safety and security. You’ve helped to foster my growth and recovery. And my child is a happy, confident, and emotionally secure toddler now, thanks to you.

You gave us a second chance at a safe and happy future, and we couldn’t feel more blessed and grateful.

Thank you!

Gemma

YOUR HOPE WHERE IT’S NEEDED MOST

Your support changes lives!

Day in day out, your support for Australians in crisis proves that change is possible.

Your faith, kindness and generosity make a real and lasting difference to people who are struggling with hardship, homelessness and injustice.

This year amazing Crisis Partners like you have outdone yourselves. Throughout the year we were humbled by the wonderful generosity you showed, and I can assure you that your giving is already hard at work helping people who are suffering. Thank you so much!

Your support will transform thousands of people’s lives, helping us to end homelessness, relieve financial hardship, provide food and care packages to those on the edge, and most of all, restore hope to those who have lost sight of it.

Thank you for working together to help create an Australia where no one is left in need.

Thanks to you, we provided last year

1,889,000

sessions of care across all social programs

887,500

crisis beds to people who experienced homelessness

YOUR SALVOS CARE DELIVERED

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The one-on-one care your support makes possible.

With support like yours, women who have fled violence receive powerfully transformative counselling from Salvos Officers like Melanie Cop. When women first arrive at a refuge and emotions are painful and raw, Melanie is a reassuring presence.

“Women share stories with me of some of their darkest and most terrifying experiences,” says Melanie. “I listen to these stories without judgement, regardless of background, culture, faith, or sexual orientation. Tears may flow, and I hold their hand, but the most valuable thing I can do is be present.”

Melanie is also there to offer longer term support, which may include supporting a family in court, or attending a police station with them to make a statement.

It’s not recommended for victim survivors to stay in their local area, so a large part of her role is to connect them with appropriate services in their new communities.

The support she offers can be practical, emotional, or spiritual.

“As chaplain, I offer spiritual care

through prayer or study, or offer a faith connection best suited to the person’s faith or belief.”

Melanie says we all have a role to play in supporting women who may be at risk of, or experiencing, domestic violence. As she says, “If you have a gut feeling that something is not quite right with a friend or family member, it’s important to check in with them.”

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YOUR FLOOD RESPONSE

Your kindness really counted when crisis hit QLD & NSW Thank you so much for your rapid action when Queensland and New South Wales were hit by the worst floods Australia has ever seen. The power of people like you coming together is amazing.

When devastating floods hit the east coast of Australia earlier this year, you helped us respond immediately with practical, financial, emotional and spiritual support directly to those most affected and displaced from their homes.

We immediately released $1 million of Red Shield Appeal funds for the emergency relief mission and launched an urgent appeal to raise a further $10 million to support communities for the long term as they get back on their feet.

In the first two weeks alone, Salvos officers and local volunteers provided more than 40,000 meals in 20 evacuation centres located in the worst affected areas. Communities rallied to comfort and support neighbours whose homes and belongings had been swept away by the unprecedented flooding.

The next step was to help vulnerable families with financial grants towards the cost of temporary accommodation and the extensive clean-up of their properties. Thanks to your compassion and generosity, we will continue to support flood-affected communities as they rebuild their lives.

From the moment disaster strikes, your support means we’re ready to help communities on the ground, and for as long as help is needed.

Emergency flood relief thanks to supporters like you

42,647

meals and refreshments served at evacuation centres

$5,327,889 distributed in financial assistance

25,359

recovery grants issued

26,184

households assisted

RELIEVING ISOLATION

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A magical moment for 81-year-old Tom. During COVID, many people were feeling even more isolated than usual.

All over Australia the Salvos work hard to bring a sense of connection to people who feel isolated. But we couldn’t do this vital work without you and your support.

One standout example is the surprise Corps Officer Major Matt Reeve put on for Tom Connah, a much-loved member of The Salvation Army family.

After the Salvos changed his life, Tom spent 30 years volunteering; making food parcel deliveries and doing whatever he could to help others in need.

So one sunny morning, the Salvos “Yard Brass” turned up on the lawn outside Tom’s nursing home for a very special, personal performance.

“We wanted to recognise Tom for his many years of service, to thank him and let him know that we loved him,” says Matt.

“A Yard Brass visit helps older people to still feel connected.

When we played to Tom, there would have been maybe 50 people watching from balconies or passing by,” says Matt.

CONNECTING PEOPLE

Our doors are always open, thanks to you.

Right across Australia, the many doors of the The Salvation Army are always open. We keep them open so that people in need can ask for help, people in danger can find sanctuary, and people who feel lost and abandoned can find a way back in to happier lives.

Thank you so much for being there for elderly and isolated members of the community when they needed you most.

For example, during COVID lockdown last year, the doors at The Salvation Army Sydney Congress Hall never closed once.

All thanks to volunteers and supporters like you.

When social services in the area paused, and vulnerable people became more isolated, Danny Salisbury and his team of volunteers continued to support the homeless.

“Every Tuesday, we loaded up the vans with meals and reached out to vulnerable people in our community. It was all about building relationships with the community and seeing if there was anything else we could provide,” says Danny.

The dedication of Danny’s team of volunteers is admirable, and was repeated over and over right across the country, thanks to good people like you.

Thank you for leaving no one in need.

1800 018 399 | salvationarmy.org.au