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Students often let their reading skills slide in the summer, but not if The Salvation Army’s Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Dayton, Ohio, has anything to say about it.
 
The popular Read and Feed program is back this summer with seven Monday events scheduled at the city’s Stuart Patterson Park. Families can come together for a free lunch and book giveaway, and each week, a featured guest will read the spotlighted book.
 
This year’s events are June 3, 10, 17, and 24, and July 8, 15, and 22. About 15 to 20 people came out for each Read and Feed day last year, including a growing number of immigrants from Turkey, Africa, and the Latino world.
 
Representatives from the Dayton Fire Department will read Firefighters Are Heroes! and the Dayton Police Department plans to present We Don’t Eat Our Classmates, a book about bullying.
 
For more information on the Ray & Joan Kroc Community Centers visit kroccenter.org

In the wake of the powerful storms and tornadoes that have severely impacted Denton, Collin, and Cooke counties in Texas, The Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Service (EDS) team, has mobilized three mobile kitchens from Lewisville, Fort Worth, and Sherman and a Rapid Response Unit from Irving to provide critical support to the affected communities.
 
The Salvation Army has established a presence in several areas affected by the storm. Each unit is equipped to deliver vital necessities such as food, water, and basic comforts directly to first responders and those in need within devastated areas. Trained personnel are also on hand to offer emotional and spiritual assistance, ensuring that survivors receive essential resources and comfort during this challenging time.
 
When disaster strikes, The Salvation Army disaster personnel collaborate with federal, state, and local emergency management agencies to monitor ongoing impacts and adapt response efforts as necessary.
 
 
For more information, visit disaster.salvationarmyusa.org.

Over 80 fatalities have been reported in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, with the number expected to rise. Almost 150,000 people have been displaced from their homes.
 
The Guaíba river burst its banks in Porto Alegre, the state capital, flooding parts of the city and surrounding towns.
As soon as the roads are clear, the Salvation Army’s canteen and donation truck will be heading to Porto Alegre from territorial headquarters in São Paulo, with water, non-perishable foods, and cleaning and personal hygiene items, which have been donated by the general public.
 
Teams from The Salvation Army’s headquarters in the area have visited local surroundings to assess the devastation and need. Clothes, water, hygiene kits, cleaning supplies and food are being distributed to families experiencing difficulties.
 
With further rain predicted, Salvation Army emergency volunteers will continue with their rapid response in flood-damaged areas, carrying out further needs assessments on the ground as they work, seeking to provide emotional and spiritual support to those affected.
 
To learn more or offer your support visit https://www.sawso.org/
 

The Salvation Army along with partner agencies are fighting hunger in North Carolina with the initiative called, Bucket Brigade.
 
This is a unique program for families to grow their own portable ‘Grow Buckets while learning how to grow vegetables themselves. This can even help families stretch their grocery budgets.
 
From budding young planters to seasoned master gardeners, attendees learn both the basics and finer techniques to make their gardens grow.
 
Many low-income households usually do not have a big yard to grow things, but they do have a patio or a front porch where they can place their buckets in the sunlight and keep the plants properly hydrated and tended.
 
Everything is free for participants, thanks to a state grant given to The Salvation Army.
 
Master gardeners are trained to do public outreach and to teach budding gardeners the basics.
 
Also at these events, cooking demonstrations complete the food production cycle, deemed “From the ground to the table.”

For 10 years, The Salvation Army Canoga Park Adult Rehabilitation Center in California has leased a nearby garden plot and brought beneficiaries to cultivate, nurture and harvest crops as part of their rehabilitation journey.
 
For the past decade, the Saturday morning practice of tending the garden for an hour and a half has supported beneficiaries’ recoveries.
 
Weather permitting, a group of two to three men come to the garden weekly to plant seeds, pull weeds, water and eventually harvest crops.
Providing an activity that many haven’t experienced since childhood can evoke a sense of nostalgia, transporting them back to a time before addiction.
 
As they work outdoors, a Salvation Army pastor imparts lessons of the soil, drawing from biblical parables to support men in their journey through recovery. They emphasize the phrase “redeeming the dirt,” utilizing the garden to transform lives and foster a sense of giving back and doing good.
 
 
Learn more about The Salvation Army’s Adult Rehabilitation Centers at SalvationArmyusa.org

From July to December of 2023, The Salvation Army’s Emergency Disaster Services team in London, Ontario., worked with other agencies to aid the vulnerable population.
 
The initiative was created by the City of London, who called upon The Salvation Army to assist them. The program, Service Depots at Encampments, provided daily basic needs to people experiencing homelessness, living in unsheltered areas.
 
Through this outreach, The Salvation Army provided hundreds of volunteer hours and delivered thousands of meals. The common feedback from individuals that were helped was that they were happy to be treated with respect.
 
In total, the EDS team provided 76 days of service to this cause, not only providing meals and daily essentials but also raising awareness about homelessness in the city.
 
In 2023, The Salvation Army’s Emergency Disaster Services across Canada provided more than 69,000 meals when disaster struck.
 
Learn more at SALVATIONARMY.CA