Wednesday, September 7, 2005

3:49 PM Here’s more information on the Salvation Army opportunity mentioned below:

Due to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the Salvation Army of Metropolitan Chicago has an overwhelming need to secure additional volunteers to: 1) Answer phones at Salvation Army’s Emergency Disaster Service Center in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. 2) Help package personal goods for families arriving to Chicago at O’Hare airport this week CALL CENTER – Volunteers can work during one or more of the following shifts, Monday through Sunday: 8am – 12pm 12pm – 4pm 4pm – 8pm PACKAGING GOODS FOR FAMILIES – Volunteers can work Wednesday or Thursday, Sep 7 or 8, 1:30pm – 5pm Salvation Army Disaster Service Center 1000 Pratt Blvd. Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 On site training will be given to everyone who participates. Volunteers need to be at least 16 years old. Contact Tina Gulley-Augustus at 773-205-3525 or the Salvation Army at metvolunteer@usc.salvationarmy.org. Info needed: Name, Contact Number, Mailing Address, Available Date(s), Available Shift(s)

2:14 PM Greg and Kara Miller have discovered a practical way to help the Katrina evacuees that are streaming into Chicago:

Yesterday about 4:30 our office got an email from United Way saying they needed volunteers at O’Hare and the city’s newly established evacuee center. Greg and I went last night and helped the Salvation Army sort clothes that the trickle of evacuees changed into. And we helped city folks set up the free giveaway supplies, etc. At the end of the night, we found a pair of XL Men’s flip flops in the new supplies area. We had the pleasure of walking them back to the intake area and finding a staffer with an evacuee still wearing the boots he walked in the hurricane waters with. It was great to cheer as he got new shoes!

If you would like to volunteer with United Way, the number to call is 312-906-2100. They are actively seeking volunteers to help them process the evacuees upon their arrival in Chicago. 9:11 AM Week after week we continue to send “Anchor for the Soul” books to prison ministries across America. We would not be able to send out thousands of books without a dedicated team of volunteers like Bob Enstrom. He picks up the books at the warehouse, takes them to the church where he does all the taping and packing, and then takes the cases (sometimes as many as 33 at a time) to the post office. Often he makes six trips from his car to the post office to get everything unloaded and ready to ship. He does this almost every week because the requests continue to come in from around the country. Thanks, Bob, for your faithfulness to the Lord. Because of you, thousands of inmates learn the Good News and many come to Christ and will live eternally in heaven. 12:19 AM The latest entry on the Crosswalk weblog is called How You Can Help Katrina’s Victims.