Charity hosts ‘Do the Write Thing’ online event to provide
words of encouragement to soldiers serving overseas
The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit is celebrating Veterans Day by “Doing the WRITE Thing” to support our troops overseas on Nov. 11, 2011. The online-only event also coincides with the start of the charity’s Red Kettle fundraising campaign in metro Detroit.
While The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit is known for being the largest private provider of social services, per Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, The Salvation Army also has a long history of veteran support. The Salvation Army lassie served coffee and doughnuts to soldiers during World War I.
Services continue today as The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit announced it will use a 2010 grant of $2.6 million from The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to provide increased transitional housing for homeless veterans in Detroit, including shelter specifically for female veterans.
The Salvation Army is encouraging citizens to turn their attention to the organization’s Facebook and Twitter accounts on Nov. 11 though, and send a kind word to the nation’s veteran. By visiting www.salmich.org on Nov. 11, community members can submit a personal message online to The Salvation Army that will then be sent to service men and women currently serving overseas. Citizens may also leave messages on The Salvation Army’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/#!/salmich.
“It is just too important this time of year to forget how very thankful we are to the men and women serving our country overseas,” said Major Mark Anderson, The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit’s general secretary and metro Detroit area commander. “This initiative was created to give the public an opportunity to let the troops know that they are on our minds and in our hearts, not just on Nov. 11, but every day.”
Founded by William and Catherine Booth in London, England in 1865, The Salvation Army is a faith-based, non-profit organization dedicated to serving people in need without discrimination. This past year, The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit was involved in providing 3,194,802 million meals and 687,203 nights of shelter for the homeless. The Salvation Army uses $.85 of every dollar raised to provide direct services to people in need each and every day of the year. For more information about The Salvation Army,
please call 877-SAL-MICH, or visit us at www.salmich.org.
