In times of need
It’s often said that The Salvation Army has a ministry of “presence” – of being there in times of need.
When a huge oil fire erupted at a Mobil storage depot at Woolwich in 1964, The Salvation Army was on the scene almost as soon as the firemen, according to a report given to the Daily Telegraph. The Salvation Army provided refreshments to the fire-fighters working to control the blaze. The publication The Australian Firefighter (pictured right) also recorded the incident: Less than an hour after news of the outbreak was made public, Captain Stuart Peterson of North Ryde [Salvation Army] was on the fire-ground supplying cold drinks to our members … Neither were the Fire-float crews forgotten. Salvationists boarded the floats with tea and sandwiches and kept them going too.
When Cyclone Tracy hit Darwin in 1974, Ryde Salvation Army joined the relief effort, sorting and transporting donated clothing for those affected. Today, Ryde Salvation Army maintains a well-trained Salvation Army Emergency Services team, ready to respond to disaster or other incidents.
