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INDONESIA—Committed to providing long-term recovery, The Salvation Army continues to bring emergency assistance and medical services to victims of the Sept. 30 earthquake in West Sumatra, Indonesia.
Following the disaster, the Army was on hand with immediate assistance—distributing 1,000 tents, 2,000 blankets and 5,000 packets of milk powder. More than 30,000 people were displaced from their homes.
Currently, a makeshift medical tent—the only medical service available for miles—sees an average of 200 patients a day, while a mobile clinic visits rural communities.
Plans are underway for the construction of 60 temporary houses for widows and their families, along with reconstruction of a severely damaged primary school.
The Salvation Army remains flexible in its approach and is constantly reviewing its work to ensure that it is able to complement that of other agencies so that all communities receive the assistance they need.
From www.salvationarmy.org
AUSTRALIA—In late November, the Melbourne Salvation Army hosted a booth at the 2009 Sexpo. Aimed at raising awareness of human trafficking and advocating for those caught in the sex commerce, the booth also promoted the gospel to those involved in the sex industry. Available at the booth was the Jesus Loves Porn Stars Bible, a special version of the New Testament provided by the Bible Society of Australia that specifically targets those in the sex trade and features the testimony of a converted pornographic actor.
Earlier in the year, a similar “Stop the Traffik” booth was featured at the Brisbane Sexpo.
“It went really well for them, so we’re trying to carry on that tradition,” said Captain Danielle Strickland, social justice director in the Australia South Territory.
Sexpo is billed as a “sexuality lifestyle” event, and—in its 12th year in Australia—is ostensibly the country’s most popular public exhibition with over 55,000 people visiting last year’s event in Sydney alone.
From the Nov. 21, 2009 issue of Onfire/AU
EAST AFRICA—A micro-enterprise initiative of the women of East Africa is designed to assist those living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.
To raise the needed funds for their project, “Dorcus Beads” was established to support the women and children in Kenya and Uganda living with AIDS or caring for their own children and/or orphans with the disease.
Dorcus Beads are made from recycled magazine paper, which is then used to make necklaces, bracelets, placemats, bags, and baskets to name a few. Loose beads are also available for those who want to make their own jewelry.
For the Christmas season, tree garlands are also available.
For more information, pricing or to place an order, e-mail April Foster at ajfsareg@maf.or.ke or Meble Birengo at mvilika@maf.or.ke.
From the winter 2010 issue of Priority!
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