Published: August 08, 2008 11:36 pm            

Salvation Army opens new store

August 18 at 10 a.m. marks the opening of the new Salvation Army Family Store located on Frontage Road next to Hudson's Treasure Hunt.

The store is being housed inside the former Casion Bingo building, and currently construction is going on inside the structure in preparation of the store's grand opening.

"We've been working for about a month," said Major Don Wildish of the Salvation Army. "We've been going for about 10 hours a day, six days a week, working as hard as we can trying to turn this building into an area in which we could use for our family store."

The purpose of the new store is to take advantage of a more frequented location so that more people can benefit from the store, which is why they chose to locate next to Hudson's Treasure Hunt.

"We want people to be able to find us better," Wildish explained. "This store is going to serve the community in many ways, such as people being able to find items they will need for their families. That's why it's called a family store."

The store will be stocked with many items including clothes, appliances, and even furniture. However, the store can't operate without the neccesary donations by local individuals.

"We need the help of the community in the way of donating items to the store. Our donations come from a large range of people, but they are all people who care. They find items in their house they don't need or want, but instead of discarding them, they give them to agencies like the Salvation Army. We appreciate it when people think of the Salvation Army when donating, and we're very thankful for that." Wildish said.

When doing projects like this and everything else that comes his way at The Salvation Army, Wildish says there is a piece of scripture that alwasy sticks out in his mind.

"Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. You know, maybe I can't do this, but through Christ, all things are possible." Wildish said.

If you would like to donate to the Salvation Army, you can do so by simply dropping your items off at their main office located at 120 Sixth Ave., or if you have questions you can call (601) 483-6156.

In addition to the grand opening, there will also be a blood drive, and people are encouraged to give blood if able.

Check out next Saturday's Religion section as we go deeper with Major Don Wildish and explore why someone gives his life to a cause like The Salvation Army.

        

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