Still Open for Business
A message from the Divisional Commander KWM
Greetings!
My name Is Major Kelly Collins, and I want to take a few minutes to discuss The Salvation Army’s work and our commitment to filling the needs of our community.
The Salvation Army Central Territory consists of 11 states, broken down into 8 Divisions. In my role as the Divisional Commander of the Kansas and Western Missouri Division, I am responsible for all Salvation Army activities that happen in the entire state of Kansas and 10 Counties in Western Missouri. I am also the final decider, CEO of our Salvation Army enterprise with 29 locations spread across our Division. Finally, I am also a Pastor and a 5th generation Salvationist from a big Salvation Army family.
The Salvation Army’s mission is to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and meet human needs in His name without discrimination. As a Church organization, we are very industrious and committed to this work. As a business, we are very organized and good stewards of the resources entrusted to us!
We are on the ground at every disaster with our Canteen and Emergency Disaster response team. The Salvation Army Thrift Stores in our communities provide low-cost clothing and goods donated by our neighbors, and those proceeds help fund our work with social services. Our family shelters provide a safe place as a critical last resort from homelessness. And our area Corps are community center locations that serve many human needs from feeding programs, rent and utility assistance, Bible study, church services and much more.
Today, I am mindful of Ecclesiastes 3: verse 1, where the Bible says that “to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose unto heaven.” Basically, a time to start and a time to end.
Recently, we have made tough decisions to end our Thrift Store in Leavenworth and Family Shelter in Wichita, Kansas. It is always hard to end programs that start out with such noble purposes, however as a business the first rule is to stay in business. And sometimes business conditions cause us to change or eliminate programs that are not working efficiently. This is not the only reason for these closings, but it is an important one. When we make these decisions, it just means that we can repurpose our time and resources into new programs or existing programs that impact more people.
As I said earlier, I am a 5th generation Salvationist, so The Salvation Army runs deep in my family.
Over the years I have made many decisions and will make many more, some of them unpopular. But in spite of that, I want to assure you that we are still here to serve people and are very much open for business and intend to be here, God-willing, for many generations to come.
Going forward, my plan is to update you periodically on what’s going on with The Salvation Army. We sincerely want to be good neighbors and work with everyone to make a better community.
May God continue to grant you peace beyond understanding.
Kelly