by Rita Price
The Columbus Dispatch
[SEE FULL ARTICLE WITH PHOTOS AND GRAPHICS HERE]
A bunch of times during the past year, 8-year-old Kyjuan Glass found himself waiting and hoping for something to end.
Nighttime in a family homeless shelter.
His mom and dad’s search for work.
The growl of an empty belly.
Thinking too hard about that stuff can make it difficult to study, and Kyjuan is a smart boy who doesn’t want his grades to slip.
Whenever he caught himself “just looking up at the sky” or starting to get sleepy, he buckled down.
“If I write slow, I can concentrate,” Kyjuan said proudly.
Like a lot of kids, the Columbus fourth-grader projects an air of resiliency, and his parents pray that recent tough times won’t leave too much of a mark on his future.
But they and millions of other families have reason to worry.
According to data released today by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the recession has wiped out many of the economic gains for children that occurred in the late 1990s.
The temperature should pass 90 today, but the Salvation Army in Central Ohio still figures it's a good time to inquire about your Christmas holiday plans.
Officials are working to sign up dozens of volunteers willing to "adopt" one of the charity's red kettles and then schedule enough friends and family to cover a full day of bell ringing, not just a two-hour shift.
Atlanta, GA – Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) personnel are currently responding to tornadic activity throughout the southeastern United States. Initial reports indicate extensive damage in Tuscaloosa, Alabama with storms tracking through N. Alabama, N.W. Georgia, and S.E. Tennessee.
In response, the Alabama-Louisiana-Mississippi (ALM) Division of The Salvation Army has mobilized 10 feeding units and a communications unit. Another 22 mobile feeding units including catering trucks, mobile kitchens, and a 20,000 meal per day full service field kitchen have been placed on standby. Units are providing food, beverage, and spiritual support to storm victims in Tuscaloosa, Guntersville, and Lauderdale County, Alabama as well as Montpelier and Oxford, Mississippi. Mobile feeding units from the Kentucky-Tennessee Division (KTN) are serving victims in Chattanooga and Cleveland, Tennessee. Additional Salvation Army EDS feeding units are currently in route to affected areas throughout Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee. As damage reports are received, Salvation Army EDS personnel and mobile feeding units currently on standby in Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Maryland and West Virginia will be deployed. Financial donations are needed to support disaster relief efforts. The Salvation Army asks those who want to help to visitwww.salvationarmyusa.org or call 1-800-SAL-ARMY and designate April 2011 Tornado Outbreak. Donors may text “GIVE” to 80888. Checks may be made out to The Salvation Army Disaster Relief, P.O. Box 100339, Atlanta, GA 30384-0339. Monetary donations will ensure The Salvation Army can meet the most immediate needs of those impacted by disaster.
As gas prices soar to $4 per gallon and money is tight, who still will have enough to give?
The Salvation Army is mentioned in a Columbus Dispatch article about safely supporting Japan disaster relief without succumbing to scams.
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine warns Ohioans to watch for scams when contributing to help the relief effort for Japan.
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To schedule a Salvation Army truck to pick up your donations, please call 1-800-SA-TRUCK.
