Salvation Army Annual Report 2019: Delivering Hope to Every Community
Thanks to our generous donors, volunteers, and corporate partners, The Salvation Army Metropolitan Division delivered hope to every community in Chicago, northern Illinois, and northwest Indiana in 2019. Those gifts of money, time, and talents enabled us to keep families off the streets, feed hungry seniors, provide safe places for kids to learn and play, support survivors of human trafficking, help men and women get and stay sober, and bring hope to the hopeless.
A few 2019 highlights:
When the government shutdown that started at the end of 2018 left Transportation Safety Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement workers at O’Hare and Midway airports without pay for over a month, The Salvation Army served these struggling employees approximately 1,400 meals per day.
When the Polar Vortex struck in January and February, plunging temperatures to negative 45 degrees, our staff ventured out to tent communities and underpasses to take food and offers of shelter to people struggling with homelessness.
When widespread flooding in Winnebago County impacted more than 500 homes and businesses in March, our Emergency Disaster Services offered meals, snacks, and beverages from their mobile canteen as well as free flood kits. Each included a 5-gallon bucket, sponges, brooms, FEMA-approved cleaning supplies, gloves, garbage bags, and other materials.
When a rash of overdoses hit Chicago’s West Humboldt Park neighborhood in May, just blocks from our Freedom Center (which houses the Harbor Light Center for alcohol and substance use disorder rehabilitation), we hosted an emergency meeting to address the heroin epidemic, at the request of local, state, and federal congressmen and representatives.
When Chicago Public School teachers and staff went on strike for 11 days in October, leaving parents scrambling for a safe, low- or no-cost place to take their kids each day, four Salvation Army facilities throughout Chicago opened their doors to roughly 115 students a day, offering activities and meals.
Thank you for helping us Do the Most Good!
See the entire 2019 annual report