God’s Perfect Valentine
At First Sight?
Army Helps Alex
UNEXPECTED GIFT P.10 REDEEMING LOVE P.5 STRONGER THAN EVER P.12
Faith&Friends I N S P I R AT I O N F O R L I V I N G
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Designing
Women
MURAL AT SALVATION ARMY THRIFT STORE CELEBRATES BLACK EXCELLENCE. P.16 faithandfriends.ca I FEBRUARY 2022 • 1
Love Photos: Prostock-studio/stock.Adobe.com; godfer/stock.Adobe.com
Made for
The two co-workers who can’t stand each other realize they’re actually the perfect match. The famous celebrity falls in love with the average Joe who crosses her path. The desperate romantic races to the airport to catch his love before she gets on the plane. We’ve seen these romcom clichés a thousand times. But they’re movie magic, far removed from reality.
To learn more about God’s everlasting love, visit our website at faithandfriends.ca or contact us at: The Salvation Army Editorial Department, 2 Overlea Blvd., Toronto ON M4H 1P4. 2 • FEBRUARY 2022
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So where can we find true love? The Bible tells us that “God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect” (1 John 4:16-17 New Living Translation). No clichés. Just unconditional, transformational love.
February 2022
VOLUME 25 NUMBER 2
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FAITH BUILDERS
At First Sight? Redeeming Love novel and movie adaptation paint an unhealthy picture.
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LAUGHING MATTERS
The Price of You What’s a life worth? It depends on who does the evaluation.
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FAMILY TIME 10 The Perfect Valentine
God surprised Jeanette Levellie with an unexpected gift. FEATURES God’s Perfect Valentine
At First Sight?
Army Helps Alex
UNEXPECTED GIFT P.10 REDEEMING LOVE P.5 STRONGER THAN EVER P.12
Faith&Friends
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Women
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COVER STORY 22
Stronger Than Ever
When Alex Moncada was caught in addiction, The Salvation Army was there to help.
For the Culture
Mural at Salvation Army thrift store celebrates Black excellence.
Burying Your Pride
Stepping out of your comfort zone can show Christ’s love.
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BEYOND BORDERS 24 Mission: Accomplished
For Shirley and Bob McArthur, their decades of mission trips were a labour of love. But one stood out. LITE STUFF 28 Eating Healthy With Erin
Sudoku, Quick Quiz. NIFTY THRIFTY 30 It’s Party Time Again!
Five items you can thrift for your next get-together. faithandfriends.ca I FEBRUARY 2022
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Faith&Friends
FROM THE EDITOR
After the Flood
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taff writer Kristin Ostensen had just put the finishing touches on this month’s cover story in Faith & Friends when she was sent out to British Columbia to cover The Salvation Army’s response to the floods that ravaged the area late last year. “It was surreal,” says Kristin, a B.C. native. “It was my first time visiting home in almost three years, and I was seeing many familiar places under water. Because roads were closed, for example, the journey between Abbotsford and Chilliwack, normally a 20-minute trip, took well over an hour.” At the same time, she was moved to see the work being done by Salvation Army staff and volunteers in those hard-hit communities. “ ‘First on the scene, last to leave,’ was their motto,” Kristin says. “They served with compassion and grace, not looking for any recognition. Yet, when our team took a break, people would often approach us, having noticed the red Salvation Army shields on our coats, and thank us for our service. It filled my heart to be able to contribute to the flood relief efforts in any way.” You can read the results of Kristin’s hard work—“As Long As We’re Needed”—in the January issue of our sister magazine, Salvationist, as well as view it online at Salvationist.ca. And her cover story in this issue, dealing with a very special mural at a Salvation Army thrift store, is on page 16.
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Mission Statement To show Christ at work in the lives of real people, and to provide spiritual resources for those who are new to the Christian faith.
Faith & Friends is published monthly by: The Salvation Army 2 Overlea Blvd, Toronto Ontario, M4H 1P4 International Headquarters 101 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4P 4EP, England William and Catherine Booth FOUNDERS
Brian Peddle, GENERAL Commissioner Floyd Tidd TERRITORIAL COMMANDER
Lt-Colonel John P. Murray SECRETARY FOR COMMUNICATIONS Geoff Moulton, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Pamela Richardson ASSISTANT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Kristin Ostensen MANAGING EDITOR OF SALVATIONIST AND SALVATIONIST.CA Ken Ramstead, EDITOR
Lisa Suroso GRAPHIC DESIGN SPECIALIST
Rivonny Luchas DIGITAL MEDIA SPECIALIST
Ada Leung CIRCULATION CO-ORDINATOR
Giselle Randall STAFF WRITER Scripture Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from New International Version Contact Us P. (416) 467-3188, F. (416) 422-6217 Websites faithandfriends.ca, salvationist.ca, salvationarmy.ca Email faithandfriends@salvationarmy.ca Subscription for one year: Canada $17 (includes GST/HST); U.S. $22; foreign $24 P. (416) 422-6119 circulation@salvationarmy.ca All articles are copyright The Salvation Army Canada & Bermuda and cannot be reproduced without permission. Publications Mail Agreement No. 40064794 ISSN 1702-0131
Faith&Friends
FAITH BUILDERS
At First Sight? Redeeming Love novel and movie adaptation paint an unhealthy picture. by Laura Van Schaick
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ith more than three million copies sold worldwide, in more than 30 languages, Francine Rivers’ 1991 novel Redeeming Love debuted on the big screen last month. Set during the California Gold Rush of 1850 and loosely based on the biblical story of Hosea, we meet Sarah, who is sold into prostitution at the tender age of eight and is given the working name Angel. After a decade of living as a sex slave, she catches the eye of farmer Michael Hosea. God tells Michael, who is described as “a man who seeks God’s heart in everything,” to marry Angel.
That command is not so easy to carry out, and Michael struggles against Angel’s resistance until “her frozen heart begins to thaw,” as the novel’s dust cover triumphantly describes. On the surface, this would appear to be a truly beautiful story of unconditional love: Michael “looked at a harlot and saw someone worthy of love.” But is it really that simple? Troubling Behaviour Despite its overwhelming popularity, there are elements of this romance that paint an unhealthy picture of love.
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FAITH BUILDERS
Photo: Courtesy of Universal Pictures
Faith&Friends
“This is not a romantic love. This is not a holy love. It is a harmful abuse of power.” LAURA VAN SCHAICK
Throughout the narrative, Michael demonstrates some disturbing characteristics of abuse: • When Michael first meets Angel, he renames her Mara. Despite repeated requests that he call her Angel, Michael continues to bestow different names upon her. Abusers will seek to erase their victims’ innate sense of personhood, and renaming them is an often-used tactic. • Michael then announces his intentions to Angel. There’s no request made, only a command—you are going to marry me. Despite repeated refusals to his proposal, when Michael returns to Angel’s brothel one night and finds her badly beaten and nearly unconscious, he pays a hefty sum to the madam and promptly marries her without her full consent. • Angel tries to flee, finding work at a general store, then as a cook
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and finally opening a halfway house to offer hope to women wanting to leave a life of prostitution. Despite her attempts to hide her tracks, Michael repeatedly seeks Angel out and brings her back to his remote farmhouse. This is not a romantic love. This is not a holy love. It is a harmful abuse of power. And it does not model the type of love God offers to us. Power and Consent In light of the #MeToo movement and allegations of abuse in the church, the importance of consent and respect cannot be over emphasized, not only in sexual relationships but also emotional and spiritual ones. Michael rarely gives Angel agency, the privilege to choose and act for oneself. While he doesn’t rape her, Michael violates Angel’s agency in many other physical, emotional and social ways.
Where unequal power exists, consent does not. The Freedom to Choose Marriage is often used as a metaphor for Jesus’ love for us. But the marriage depicted in Redeeming Love is in opposition to the love God offers to us. In fact, agency is essential in God’s plan of salvation. While Jesus’ sacrificial love, demonstrated in his death and Resurrection, is for all people everywhere, God-given free will acknowledges that we can accept or reject this love offered freely to us. Jesus demonstrated this in practical ways during His ministry on earth. On one occasion, Jesus asked a paralyzed man, “Do you want to get well?” But it was not until the man consented that Jesus healed him (see John 5:1-6). Redeeming Love’s tag line touts, “Choose the life you want.” While there is a chance the movie will redeem the unpleasant truths displayed in the book, ultimately, it is for us to choose how to respond to Jesus’ love, generously and unconditionally offered to all.
Reading Hosea Whenever we read a biblical text such as the Book of Hosea, we need to ground it in the time and place it was written. The culture in which the prophet Hosea lived and preached is vastly different from our current reality. In Israel in the 700s BC, arranged marriage was commonplace, as was servitude and the buying and selling of women. The words and actions of Hosea reflect what would have been considered acceptable behaviour by a husband toward an unfaithful wife in those times—but it is not at all acceptable in our own time. Redeeming Love, though based on a biblical story, simply doesn’t translate well to a modern context. But while the metaphoric marriage between Hosea and Gomer in the Bible, or Michael and Angel in the book and movie, may not sit well with today’s readers, the underlying message of both Rivers’ book and the Book of Hosea still resonates: There is nothing we can say or do that will separate us from the love of God. His unconditional and unfailing love remains steadfast for all throughout time and history.
(left) Captain Laura Van Schaick is the divisional secretary for women’s ministries for The Salvation Army’s Ontario Division.
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Faith&Friends
LAUGHING MATTERS
The Price of You What’s a life worth? It depends on who does the evaluation. by Phil Callaway
Photo: Feng Yu/stock.Adobe.com
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f it’s true that money can’t buy happiness and it can’t buy what it used to, it can buy you the most expensive car in the world. And what is it? A vintage Ferrari 250 GTO built back in 1963. It’s one of only 39 ever made. For a mere $52 million, it could be yours. Or maybe you’d prefer some shoes. I know my wife would. How about some ruby slippers designed by Harry Winston? They’re a replica of Dorothy’s slippers from The Wizard of Oz, and they’re encrusted in diamonds. The cost of the most expensive shoe in the world? $1.5 million for the left one, and the same for the right. Or you could buy 120,000 pairs of running shoes with
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that money. It’s really up to you. The most expensive hot dog in the world can be purchased at Capital Dawg in Sacramento, California, for a mere $150. I sure hope that comes with curly fries. As for the most expensive soup on the planet? It is available at Kai Mayfair in London, England, for $190 a bowl. I sure hope it’s hot. The value of the soup and hot dog have to do with their ingredients, which include shark fins and a Swedish cheese valued at $200 a pound. Without Price So what is a human life worth? Well, it depends on who does the evaluation.
If the value of an object is determined by the amount paid for it, our value is out of this world. PHIL CALLAWAY
Stanford economist Stefanos Zenios and some of his colleagues calculated the average value of a year of quality human life to be $129,000. But reduced to just the basic chemical components that comprise the human body, we’re worth a paltry $160. Maybe a better question is, what value does God place on a human life? I went to jail recently. To speak, not to stay. Afterward a Christian who is serving a 20-year sentence said to me, “The thing I struggle most with is … well … I have no value.” I smiled and reminded him that our worth is not measured in terms of monetary value but by what our heavenly Father has done for us. Tears came to his eyes because down deep he knew what I was talking
about. Through the death of God’s only Son on the cross, the Father paid the price to rescue him from his crimes. 1 Peter 1:18-19 says, “It was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed … but with the precious blood of Christ.” If the value of an object is determined by the amount paid for it, our value is out of this world. Psalm 139 says we are fearfully and wonderfully made. And woven throughout the entire story of redemption is this awesome truth: God loved us to death. Today, may our lives reflect our joy and gratitude to the God who paid the ultimate price on the cross for our forgiveness. We are valued and loved far beyond any Ferrari, any ruby slippers, any shark fin soup. Or Swedish cheese.
(left) Phil Callaway’s Laugh Again radio program airs 700 times a week in Canada. Visit him at laughagain.org.
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Faith&Friends
FAMILY TIME
Photo: Jeanette Levellie
Three Generations From left, Marie Adams and her son, Daniel Adams, with her parents, Jeanette and Kevin Levellie
The Perfect Valentine After we decided to downplay our Valentine’s Day wedding anniversary, God surprised us with an unexpected gift. by Jeanette Levellie
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ast February 1, I asked my three grandchildren what their current favourite candies were. Teenagers Jenessa, Daniel and Grace knew about my penchant for gift-giving and loved my tradition of showering them with sweets on Valentine’s Day. Grace even made a list and taped it on my fridge. Shattered Dreams But their mother, our daughter, Marie, didn’t share the kids’ enthusiasm. “I detest Valentine’s Day,” she
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grumbled. “Standing at my checkout station and ringing up bouquets of roses, romantic cards and heartshaped boxes of chocolate makes me want to cry, scream or both.” I wasn’t surprised at Marie’s outburst. Or her feelings. Only a year before, Marie had endured a painful divorce after praying and struggling for 15 years to save her marriage. She worked at a superstore now to keep a roof over her kids’ heads and food on the table. I could understand why seeing signs of couples in love would
remind Marie of her recent loss. To add to her distress, Kevin’s and my anniversary was on Valentine’s Day. We always celebrated big (remember my love of gift-giving) with supper in a classy restaurant and lots of presents. But how could we celebrate now, on year 45 of our wedding day, without reminding Marie of all her shattered dreams? Hiding Our Happiness “Let’s not talk around Marie about our fancy supper or what gifts we bought each other this year,” I told Kevin. He agreed to downplay our usual celebration. We’d just give her and the kids their candies and go on with our lives. And ask God to fill the empty place in Marie’s heart with His love. A love that would never walk away. We shouldn’t have been shocked at His quick answer. On the Sunday before Valentine’s Day, we invited Marie and the kids over for lunch. As they filed through the back door, Marie handed each of us a bright red gift bag. “Happy anniversary!” she said, her smile gleaming. Both bags held thoughtful gifts she knew we’d like. A classical-music CD, chocolates and a DVD on the Second World War for Kevin. A “Cats Rule” mug, gourmet jelly beans and purple socks for me. “Oh, honey, how sweet of you!”
I said. “We didn’t expect all this.” Kevin nodded. “But it’s your anniversary,” Marie chirped. “After 45 years, you guys deserve life-sized trophies! I wish I could afford those, but these will have to do.” Genuine joy shone in her face. Just Like Jesus My eyes burned with unshed tears as I opened my arms to our daughter. Kevin joined us for a group hug. We realized what a sacrifice Marie had made to set aside her grief and share in our happiness. A sweet reflection of Jesus. I recalled when Jesus told His followers, “The reason My Father loves Me is that I lay down My life— only to take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again” (John 10:17-18). Jesus chose to come to our world as a human and give Himself on our behalf, so we could join God’s family. Everything He did, even to His torturous death and glorious Resurrection, was with us in mind. Because His very nature is love. Giving, unselfish love. Better than chocolate. Better than purple socks. Jesus—the perfect valentine.
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Faith&Friends
FEATURE
Stronger Than Ever
WHEN ALEX MONCADA WAS CAUGHT IN ADDICTION, THE SALVATION ARMY WAS THERE TO HELP. by Kristin Ostensen
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walked in looking like a dead person.” It was the first time Alex Moncada had ever been to The Salvation Army in Ajax, Ont. “I was not sober,” she says. “I was using anything and everything.” Alex’s neighbour was the one who brought her to the Army. “She knew that I was struggling, that I was about to lose everything,” Alex shares. “I didn’t even have money for groceries.” Once there, Alex met James Dark, community services co-ordinator. Seeing that she was under the influence and covered in visible bruises, James’ heart went out to her. “We said to her, ‘Let us help you,’ ” he recalls. “And her response was, ‘Yes, I need your help.’ ” “They welcomed me with open arms, I remember that much,” says Alex. “And they never gave up on me.”
Hope in Ajax “They welcomed me with open arms,” says Alex Moncada about The Salvation Army, “and they never gave up on me”
Roller-Coaster As a young adult living in the Niagara region of Ontario, Alex’s life was on track. She had just graduated from the radio, television and film faithandfriends.ca I FEBRUARY 2022
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program at Niagara College and was looking forward to starting a career when a surgery derailed her plans. “I was prescribed Percocet, and I had an abusive boyfriend who took my pills,” she says. “He used to ditch me all the time because he was an addict, and I wanted to know why he’d choose this pill over me. So I tried it. And then I did it again and again.” What followed was a rollercoaster of drug use, as Alex moved on from Percocet to heroin, crystal meth and other party drugs. “Toward the end, I was allowing people to just inject me with all kinds of things,” she remembers.
First Steps In 2017, after getting kicked out of the place she was living, she wound up at a dilapidated house—a “rock bottom” moment for Alex. “The house was infested with rats and cockroaches; it was the worst living conditions you could think of,” she says. Alex left her boyfriend, called her parents for help and moved home to Pickering, Ont.—the first step on her journey to sobriety. Alex was sober for a month before she relapsed and overdosed. “I woke up in the hospital, extremely angry that I was alive,” she says. “It didn’t make any sense to me. I should have been dead.” Alex went to detox twice and had a brief stint in rehab in February 2018. But at that point, Alex couldn’t make sobriety stick. “That was the year that I was trying to get sober,” she recalls. “I was working in Toronto, but I was still going to Niagara to get my fix. And then toward the end, one of my good friends overdosed, and I had to give a speech at their funeral. That was another rock bottom for me.” Grace of God It was during that tumultuous year
Cake Day! Alex celebrates her second sober anniversary at The Salvation Army in Ajax, Ont., with James Dark
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“I woke up in the hospital, extremely angry that I was alive. It didn’t make any sense to me. I should have been dead.” ALEX MONCADA
that Alex first came to The Salvation Army and met James and Diane Gauthier, then client advocacy co-ordinator. While that initial meeting is a bit of a blur, one of the first ways the Army assisted Alex was with groceries. “I could not believe how much food they gave me,” she says. “And then they gave me a taxi to go home with my food order. I was in tears, I was so happy.” For Alex, it wasn’t just about the food: “It had been so long since somebody treated me with respect like that and gave me love. I had not felt love like that until I met Diane and James and everybody at The Salvation Army.” That love was what made the difference for Alex in helping her overcome her addiction. “That’s what brought me to my knees,” she says. “Because I realized I have all these resources and people who were cheering me on, and I wasn’t utilizing them. “So finally, one day, I decided to utilize everything,” she continues. “I got a sponsor, I went to a Cocaine
Anonymous meeting and, by the grace of God, I am clean for more than two years now.” Cause for Celebration Since she stopped using drugs on June 3, 2019, Alex has celebrated two sober anniversaries with her friends at The Salvation Army in Ajax. This year, she and the team shared a tiramisu—which James dubbed a “tirama-two”—to mark the occasion. “We were so happy that she shared the celebration with us,” says James. “She’s the one who deserves all the credit; we were just here to help her when she needed.” Today, Alex is studying to become a personal support worker, and she still visits The Salvation Army at least once a week. “I walked in those doors broken, and I have come out stronger than ever,” Alex says. “And it’s because of their support. “They treated me like a human being,” she continues. “I think that was the most important part—they didn’t treat me like an addict. That’s why I love The Salvation Army.” faithandfriends.ca I FEBRUARY 2022
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Faith&Friends
COVER STORY
For the Culture MURAL AT SALVATION ARMY THRIFT STORE CELEBRATES BLACK EXCELLENCE. by Kristin Ostensen ON MAY 25, 2020, PEOPLE around the world were shocked and horrified by the murder of George Floyd, a Black man who was suffocated by a police officer in Minneapolis. For Kayla Whitney, an artist living in Hamilton, Ont., that terrible event became the impetus behind a new mural celebrating the Black diaspora around the globe. Titled “For the Culture,” the mural was created by artists Tandeka Tremblay and Aichoucha Haidara, in partnership with Kayla and The Salvation Army. Powerful Art Unveiled last summer, the mural spans more than 30 metres— the entire length of the eastern wall of the Army’s thrift store in downtown Hamilton. It uses many 16 • FEBRUARY 2022
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different symbols to pay homage to Black people from various cultural backgrounds. Kayla notes that the mural project is about addressing racial inequality in society at large and in the public art scene. Rather than make the mural herself, she adopted the role of facilitator, raising funds to create the mural, hiring the artists, finding a suitable location and pitching in with whatever needed to be done along the way. “I wanted to do a mural in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, and I wanted it to be a paid opportunity for Black women artists because we don’t have much diversity in our public art in Hamilton,” she notes. The two women who designed the mural brought a wealth of experience and knowledge to the project.
Designing Women Tandeka Tremblay, Aichoucha Haidara and Kayla Whitney stand before the mural they created at the Salvation Army thrift store in Hamilton, Ont.
Tandeka is a graphic designer, illustrator and first-generation Canadian, with parents from Jamaica and St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the Caribbean. Aichoucha is an artist and designer from Timbuktu, Mali, who uses her skills to create
artworks that are often Afrocentric in theme. “The design is so good, it blows my mind,” Kayla smiles. “Nothing is there just because it’s pretty; it all means something. And I think that’s what makes it so powerful. faithandfriends.ca I FEBRUARY 2022
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COVER STORY
IN THEIR OWN WORDS ARTISTS TANDEKA TREMBLAY AND AICHOUCHA HAIDARA EXPLAIN THE MURAL.
This traditional Malian pattern is called BogolanFini. The pattern is typically made using colours created from earth minerals. The vibrant rainbow zebra is to show our love and support to our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters, who face many of the same hardships as BIPOC.
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The floral designs represent the flowers of the Caribbean and Southern Africa. The peacock is a representation of West African religions and cultures that are shared among Indigenous Africans and people of African descent. The swallow-tailed hummingbird is the national bird of Jamaica.
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Our centrepiece is a Black woman. She portrays elements of identity from African, American and Caribbean culture to display the unity and strength of our cultures together. Her glasses reflect the history of Blacks in Canada.
The right side of the design showcases inventions and musical contributions by Black people. A disco ball and piano keys signify the funk and soul era. The guitar is used in music across the globe and can be seen as a musical instrument that connects us all. Stickers on the guitar and the capoeira outline represent some of the musical styles and societal contributions Black culture has created.
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COVER STORY
Kids in Colour Youth from the Empowerment Squared community centre take part in painting the mural
Big Team Once the artists were hired and fundraising was underway, Kayla faced the challenge of finding the right location—one that would ensure high visibility for the mural. “I didn’t want to make a mural that felt this important and then have it be way out there somewhere,” she says. “I wanted it to be downtown, to be something that people would walk by and interact with a lot.” Kayla eventually got in contact with the business improvement association for the King Street area, which is where the Army’s thrift store is located. When approached, the store, which already had an award-winning mural on the western wall celebrating the history of Hamilton, immediately jumped at 20 • FEBRUARY 2022
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the chance to be involved. For Ted Troughton, managing director of The Salvation Army’s National Recycling Operations (NRO), the mural speaks to the Army’s commitment to working toward diversity and inclusion for all. “When people visit our store and see the mural, I hope they’ll see that we’re an inclusive organization, and we’re not afraid to say that we are,” he says. “When someone comes to The Salvation Army for help, we don’t look at their sexual orientation, colour, religion, anything,” Ted continues. “We just ask, ‘Are you in need?’ and we help.” “Having the support of The Salvation Army was huge to us,” says Kayla. “We always knew that we had
“Having the support of The Salvation Army was huge to us. We always knew that we had a big team of people behind us.” KAYLA WHITNEY a big team of people behind us.” That support was present from start to finish. “Once we actually started painting, everyone at the thrift store was so enthusiastic,” Kayla says. “They would talk to us and say, ‘I can’t believe what you have done—this looks great!’ ” Kayla, Tandeka and Aichoucha, along with experienced muralist
Leone McComas, painted the mural last summer. Youth from a local arts camp also helped with painting. “Our goal was that the mural would be positive and inspiring,” says Kayla, “that the Black community would see their culture celebrated and welcomed. We wanted to let people know that you belong here. We’re happy that you’re here.”
More in Store NRO staff and the artists celebrate the unveiling of the mural. From left, Ted Troughton; Lindsay Robinson, national marketing and communications manager; Craig Withers, store manager; Kayla; Tandeka; Maria Guayacan, national retail operations manager; Paul Millar, retail district manager of Ontario west; and Bill May, national director of property
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FEATURE
Burying Your Pride HOW STEPPING OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE TO HELP A NEIGHBOUR CAN SHOW CHRIST’S LOVE. by Dean Simpson
Photo: sonsedskaya/stock.Adobe.com
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y mother does not have a very good track record with cats. She has accidentally run over several of them in her time, including some of our own, and there have also been some narrow misses along the way. Mom has never had a harmonious relationship with animals, despite raising three sons who turned the family home into a veritable zoo of small creatures ranging from mice and rabbits to tadpoles and feathered friends. Her greatest achievement, however, if you ask her sons, is when she buried the wrong cat. “The Wrong Cat” As the story goes, Mom had dropped 22 • FEBRUARY 2022
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my brothers and me off at school and was heading home when she spotted an anxious-looking neighbour standing on the side of the road beside a cardboard box and a shovel. Curious, Mom pulled over and greeted her. “My goodness, Di, whatever’s the matter?” Di pointed to a spot behind the box where a large black cat was lying, obviously deceased. “Oh, Helen, it’s our cat. He must have been hit by a car. I need to get him into this box so I can get him home and bury him before the children get home. I don’t want them to see him like this.” Now, as I stated previously, my mother’s relationship with animals isn’t strong at the best of times. Dealing with a dead one took
the matter to a new low. A million excuses ran through her mind before she said, “All right, let’s give it a go.” A hidden video camera would have captured quite a scene over the ensuing 10 minutes as the two young mothers tried to scoop a rigor-mortis-ridden feline onto a thin shovel and then into a cardboard box. They tried to ignore people who drove slowly past with various facial expressions ranging from open-mouthed gapes to furrowed brows and shakes of the head. Somehow, they managed to achieve the feat before Di uttered the words my mother was dreading: “Oh, Helen, would you mind coming back with me to help dig the hole?” Another million excuses ran through my mother’s mind before she sighed and said, “All right, let’s give it a go.” An hour later the deed was done. The cat was buried, with a mound of fresh soil the only evidence of a morning my mother would rather forget. The next day, my mother, after several cups of tea to ease an ongoing bout of nerves, received a rather hesitant phone call from Di: “Oh,
Helen, you’ll never believe it ... but our cat just walked in the back door! Oh, Helen, I think we buried the wrong cat!” Practical Christianity My mother has been a member of The Salvation Army her whole life. The work the Army does has often been referred to as “Christianity with its sleeves rolled up.” My mother reflects this reference to a tee. She has served in many voluntary capacities over the years, from packing toys for underprivileged children at Christmastime to delivering hampers to people in need. Hospitality is her strength, and she is always looking out for others, no matter the circumstance—even coming to the rescue of a neighbour and her dead cat. As Christians, we are called to serve as Jesus served. This means we will get our hands dirty at times in looking out for others. Serving as Jesus served will take us to places where we are out of our comfort zone. Wouldn’t it be nice if we all took a leaf out of my mother’s book and said, “All right, let’s give it a go”? Reprinted from Others, November 2021.
(left) Dean Simpson is part of the communications team for The Salvation Army in Australia. faithandfriends.ca I FEBRUARY 2022
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Faith&Friends
BEYOND BORDERS
(left) Kitchen Help Chief cook, Nelle Hann, and assistant cook, Irene Pardy, washing and drying dishes (bottom left) A Handy Man Team member Joel Turley at work. All together, 42 new school desks and benches were built and varnished
Photos: Bob McArthur
(bottom) Craft Sale The mission team purchased local hand-made items to bring home
Mission: Accomplished For Shirley and Bob McArthur, their decades of mission trips were a labour of love. But one stood out. by Ken Ramstead
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n 1989, Shirley and Bob McArthur were members of The Salvation Army worshipping at Etobicoke Temple in Toronto when their church welcomed a guest from New York City. Captain Sven Ljungholm told the congregation of the good work he had been doing in Jamaica. But he was being transferred home and there would soon be no one to continue his mission work. “It seemed as if the Lord was saying to us, ‘You could take up this challenge. He can’t do it anymore,’ ” Shirley says. Thus began 32 years of mission work for The Salvation Army in places such as Cuba, Belize, Barbados and Jamaica. Task at Hand While the McArthurs took part in more than 30 mission trips, the one that stayed with them the most was their trip to Haiti in 1999. “Everyone on that trip would agree that that was likely the most challenging because of the lack of materials, the lack of water and the lack of accommodation,” says Bob.
The Army’s Caribbean Territory invited them through the Army’s International Headquarters in London, England. When the couple finally received permission to go, they started putting together a team of volunteers from their church, as well as a container of materials. Forty-two people took part in the three-week mission trip, from North York Temple and Salvation Army churches all over Ontario. “The word spread and God led a lot of people to us,” says Shirley.
Happy Helpers “We are all our brother’s keeper,” says Shirley McArthur, with her husband, Bob
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Faith&Friends
BEYOND BORDERS
“It wasn’t a vacation. It was three weeks of 12-hour days, just steady work.” BOB McARTHUR The mission group was tasked with restoring a 10-room children’s home and a 22-classroom school, which had been built by The Salvation Army of Canada with the help of the Canadian government. “Both were in bad repair from concrete delaminating, which had occurred because they had originally been built with beach sand,” says Bob, explaining that the salt in the sand caused the delamination of the rebar. Having been selected for their expertise in trades, the
Photos: Bob McArthur
Homeward Bound The last of the mission group prepares to return to Canada
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team removed, then replaced, the loose concrete, scraped and peeled the paint and then repainted both buildings. They also renovated the floors and repaired termite damage on door frames. “There were approximately 18 doors in that children’s home,” Bob says. Job Well Done The accommodation for the team was not luxurious. “We slept in the pastors’ quarters on the second floor of the children’s
home, and there were only two bedrooms,” says Shirley. “Bunk beds were erected for the team in the dining room and living room; there were bunk beds everywhere!” Many of the younger team members slept outside on the balcony, and some were on the roof in a tent. There was only six hours of electricity a day—and that intermittently. The only safe water to drink came from bottles. “All the water from our laundry and dishes was used to flush the toilet. When it rained, our team would rush outside with soap and shampoo to Triumphant Trio wash and shower,” smiles Shirley. Lt-Col Alfred Pierre (right) and Mjr “It wasn’t a vacation,” reiterates Bob. Rosemary Haefeli, Salvation Army pastors stationed in Haiti, with Bob “It was three weeks of 12-hour days, just steady work.” But the team left Haiti with both happy to have an opportunity to buildings fully repaired and restored. provide both practical and financial “We were all pleased with what the support to the project.” group had accomplished,” says Shirley. Shirley responds to that question with two verses from the Bible. “Our Brother’s Keeper” First, “In response to all [God] has What makes the McArthurs, and done for us, let us outdo each other thousands of other Salvation Army in being helpful and kind to each members, participate in mission trips? other and in doing good” (Hebrews For Bob, who is practically minded, 10:24 The Living Bible). Second, “For these trips provide “value for the money.” we are God’s handiwork, created “Some of our team members in Christ Jesus to do good works, were professionals,” he explains. which God prepared in advance for “Each paid their way and provided us to do” (Ephesians 2:10). supplies. What might have cost “We are all our brother’s keeper,” close to a half a million Haitian she concludes. “How could we turn dollars was done at a fraction of that away when something needed to be amount. The team members were done?”
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Faith&Friends
LITE STUFF
Eating Healthy With Erin MARINARA SHRIMP TIME 20 min MAKES 4 servings
SERVE WITH French bread
30 ml (2 tbsp) olive oil 30 ml (2 tbsp) butter 250 ml (1 cup) white onion, diced 2 cloves garlic 15 ml (1 tbsp) vinegar 5 ml (1 tsp) vegetable seasoning 625 g (20 oz.) thawed shrimp with the shell on 60 ml (¼ cup) water 125 ml (½ cup) marinara sauce parsley to garnish
1. Heat olive oil in pan over medium-low heat and add butter, diced onion and garlic. Cook until soft. 2. Raise heat slowly and add vinegar to deglaze pan. Constantly stir until vinegar evaporates. 3. Add vegetable seasoning to the pan. Add shrimp with water and marinara sauce. Continue to cook over medium heat until shrimp turn pink, approximately 10 minutes.
BAKED PISTACHIO AND CRANBERRY PIE TIME 20 min MAKES 4 servings
SERVE WITH crostinis
Recipe photos: Erin Stanley
5 ml (1 tsp) butter 200 g (7 oz.) wheel of brie cheese 45 ml (3 tbsp) honey 75 ml (1/3 cup) shelled pistachios, roughly chopped 60 ml (¼ cup) cranberries 15 ml (1 tbsp) honey to garnish
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1. Preheat oven to 190 C (375 F) and lightly grease oven-safe skillet or baking pan. 2. Rub rind of brie with honey and place on skillet or pan. 3. Coat in crushed pistachios and cranberries. 4. Bake for 15 minutes and then allow to sit for 3 minutes. 5. Drizzle with honey to garnish.
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Faith&Friends
NIFTY THRIFTY
It’s Party Time Again! Five items you can thrift for your next get-together.
W
hether it’s an intimate dinner party or a celebration with family and friends, the Salvation Army thrift store can help with all your party planning decor. Take a look at all the wonderful thrift store finds I used to decorate for a baby shower.
Baskets In all shapes and sizes, great for goodie bags, little treats or shoes.
Ice Bucket Keep drinks cool, display a large flower arrangement or use to hold toys for the kids.
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Trays Give height to a table and help keep glasses or food organized.
Candle Holders Beautiful in any size and add a nice atmosphere to the room.
Material Use as napkins and a table runner to help create a cohesive look.
It seems like a long time since I’ve been excited about decorating for a gathering with those I love. I hope this next year is full of wonderful celebrations and the most amazing second-hand finds from the Salvation Army thrift store. (left) Tijana McAllister is the frugalista behind A Plentiful Life, a lifestyle blog that shows readers how to live their best lives on a budget. She is also a creative expert for The Salvation Army’s thrift stores. Find a thrift store near you at thriftstore.ca. The Salvation Army continues to provide its essential services to the vulnerable, but to ensure the safety of clients and staff some thrift stores have been temporarily closed due to COVID-19.
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