Salvation Army has served Melfort for 100 years

Col. Bob Ward and his wife Marguerite have served the Salvation Army as far as South Africa, Zimbabwe and Pakistan, but in their younger days, they served in Melfort.

 “We look back at our time in Melfort as an opportunity where we actually learned a lot of the ways of working that have stood us in good stead as we lived it and worked,” said Bob Ward, who served in Melfort between 1971 and 1975 back when he was a Lieutenant and then a Captain.

The pair came back to Melfort to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the church in Melfort June 16 to 19.

Lt. Col. Jim Champ, who’s now the secretary for communications for Canada, served in Melfort for three years starting in 1975 as a Lieutenant with his wife Barbara, said that he, like Ward, learned key lessons there that has served him for the rest of his careers.

“The ability to put faith in action – Christianity with legs on it to help people and connect the dots between what people believe and how they live,” he said.

Both said that they learned how to form partnerships with the community at large so they could better help those in need.

The celebration of the centennial began with a meet and greet on the Friday, a march, pancake breakfast and banquet on Saturday and a service and luncheon on Sunday.

Cpt. Rick Robins, along with his wife Cpt. Jennifer Robins, serves as the current commanding officers for Melfort. He said after the march he felt excited and proud of what the Army has done in Melfort over its 100 years.

“It just reignites a passion in you to serve, about why we do what we do in the community,” he said. “It was just exciting to see the look on people’s faces as we walked past.”

He said that while the Army has changed to meet the community’s needs over the years, the goal remains the same: help people who need it, no matter their race or creed, transform their lives.

“There are parts where society looks after people but there’s always going to be some that fall through the cracks and that’s where the Salvation Army picks up those areas, to help people who tend to fall through the cracks.”

The first commanding officer in Melfort was Cpt. Anna Sowton, who was appointed to the position in June 16, 1917.

Both Champ and Ward shared memories of their time in Melfort.

“It was my first appointment out of college and our firstborn was here, at Melfort Union Hospital,” Champ said.

For him, the biggest memory overall was the people that we were privileged to serve, both within the congregation and the community.”

Ward remembered when the co-op burnt down, while he was away to a music camp.

“My wife and a number of people who were attached to the Salvation Army got together and we called the grocery store and they donated bread and made sandwiches,” he said. “We served coffee and sandwiches and cold drinks to the firemen who were battling the blaze – and it was a big blaze.”

As a Christian church, the Salvation Army also is a part of people’s spiritual journey – but only if that’s something they want. Robins said because each person’s journey of faith is different, it’s not easy to sum up what effect the Army has had spiritually in the last 100 years.

“Our job is, in the pastoral role we have as a pastor in the community, is to preach the gospel and to encourage people to faith, but not jam it down their throats,” Robins said.

The commanding officer quoted St. Francis of Assisi, who told the faithful to preach the gospel and use words if necessary.

“It’s not about the words we speak, it’s about our actions,” he said. “If we truly want to be that transforming influence, our faith has to be a part of that because that’s that whole transformation from the inside out.”

As for the future, the Army has been working on a strategic plan that aims to build relationships, transform lives and build a vibrant Christian community.

“We think there’s a bright future for the Salvation Army here in the community,” Robins said. “There’s still lots of work to be done and lots of work for the Army to be done.”