Donations in Action: Serving seniors and grandparents
"Donations in Action" is a regular series about how The Salvation Army Northern Division and our supporters are adapting to COVID-19 and finding creative ways to serve people and families across Minnesota and North Dakota.
Below are examples of how our staff members, volunteers, donors, and partners are making a positive impact on those affected by this historic crisis.
This particular installment of Donations in Action highlights some of the ways The Salvation Army supports senior citizens and grandparents.
Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. – Galatians 6:2
Please join our fight by giving a donation. Your gift will provide emergency assistance for those who desperately need it.
Emergency breakdown
A grandmother often drives to a Twin Cities Salvation Army food shelf to pick up groceries for her and her grandchildren. She has been raising the kids alone every since their mother passed away.
“I live paycheck to paycheck,” the grandmother said. “It’s hard and we struggle.”
Recently, her car broke down and she had no money to pay for the repairs. Without transportation, she could not come to The Salvation Army for food because she and her grandkids do not live near a bus line.
“When (my car) broke down, I honestly didn’t know what I was going to do,” the grandmother said.
She called her local Salvation Army for help. A case worker went straight to work and soon found money to pay for the repairs, through a grant called the Community Sharing Fund.
The grandmother was both thrilled and thankful.
“I consider it a true blessing and appreciate it more than words can even say," she said.
Homelessness averted
An elderly man came to us in danger of losing his apartment, through no fault of his own.
He was about to be released from a care facility, where he’d been forced to stay for two months due to health concerns. In that time, almost all of his social security income had been used to pay for his stay at the facility. He had only $150 left to pay toward two months’ worth of back rent at his apartment.
The man’s financial need was beyond what The Salvation Army’s rent assistance programs could offer, so our case worker began to research outside grant opportunities. Soon she found a grant that would cover the man’s outstanding rent balance.
This man could not have been happier.
“Now he has a home to return to after he leaves the care facility,” the case worker said. “This man’s situation is a great example of how The Salvation Army and other agencies work together to fill needs within our communities.”
Grandmother is exceptional
The Salvation Army operates a number of permanent-supportive housing units that provide affordable housing for low-income families.
One such unit is occupied by an incredible grandmother who has taken it upon herself to care for her grandkids. She had lived alone until her daughter began to struggle and lost custody of the children.
The grandmother is grateful to The Salvation Army and our donors for providing a safe place for her to raise her grandchildren. She is a humble, hard-working woman who “is doing what needs to be done under the circumstances,” her Salvation Army case worker said. “She doesn't regard parenting these children as exceptional … but I beg to differ.”
Please join The Salvation Army in serving those affected by the COVID-19 crisis by giving a donation or signing up to volunteer. Your help will provide emergency assistance and hope for people and families in desperate need.
If you are feeling lonely, fearful or hopeless due to the COVID-19 crisis, call our Emotional and Spiritual Care Hotline at 877-220-4195 anytime between 8 a.m.–8 p.m. Central Time. Trained Salvation Army officers, employees and volunteers will be available to talk, listen to you, and pray for you.