'Tis Better to Give

Cover Story

 
Winnipeg Women Magazine profiles a couple of the city’s unsung heroes, who not only make a difference through the holiday season, but year-round.
By Carly Peters

During the holiday season we usually take the time to give thanks for all our blessings over the past year, and open our hearts to those who may not have been as fortunate. But for a few of Winnipeg’s unsung heroes, this care and attention to the city’s less privileged is a year-round endeavour.

The Season of Sally Ann

The Salvation Army has been a symbol of humanity across the world since 1852 when William Booth abandoned the conventional concept of a church and a pulpit, and took a message of compassion directly to the people. Whether it’s providing a warm meal and a safe bed for someone living on the streets, or special counseling for someone suffering with an addiction, the Salvation Army doesn’t discriminate when it comes to care.

It was the compassion of two Salvation Army workers that lead Major Susan van Duinen, divisional commander for the Salvation Army, Manitoba & Northwest Ontario Division, to seek a life of faith and service.

Van Duinen was first introduced to the Salvation Army in Soest, Germany, where her father was posted. The organization had a gift shop and restaurant set up on the base for Canadian families, and she worked for the owners on the weekend.

“They were such giving people, and I really looked up to them. It was there I began my journey of faith and my journey with the Salvation Army,” she says. “When we moved back to Halifax, the first thing I did was look up the Salvation Army and joined.”

Van Duinen joined the organization’s seminary, and became ordained as a minister in 1978. There she also met her husband, who had come from Holland looking to learn English and become a missionary. They fell in love, got married and continued on their path of service together.

That path lead them to Winnipeg four years ago, and last year Van Duinen was appointed divisional commander, a first for a married women within the organization. This has given her the opportunity to look at some of the Salvation Army’s local endeavours and evaluate if they are still relevant or if there is a different need within the city and beyond.

“We are stewards to the people. They trust us with their time and with their donations, so as an organization you have look at how you address different needs from time to time,” she says.

One of the more recent endeavours of the organization is its work to develop a program to help victims of human trafficking. She says the Salvation Army is currently working with different organizations to see what services they can offer and raise awareness of the issue within the community.

The organization is also in need of some infrastructure updates. Many of the buildings that house the Salvation Army’s services and programs, such as the 180 Henry shelter that runs the Haven program for men who have physical and mental disabilities, are in dire need of renovations. They are also looking for the donations to match the needs of two long-term care facilities in Winnipeg and Brandon.

The Salvation Army’s most recognizable holiday donation campaign is the Christmas kettles, staple seasonal symbols in malls and outside stores that raise a significant amount of funds across the country. The Salvation Army also runs the Santa Shuffle, a bed-in for their Toy Mountain and, most recently, a carol festival, a free night of music to say thanks to the community.

And, states van Duinen, there are a lot of things to thank Winnipeg for.

“The public knows we’re here, we’re part of the fabric of the community,” she says. “We always seem to have something coming in. Even in those hard economic times people are generous. I believe Canadians’ hearts are very big.”

Van Duinen says it’s not always easy to keep a positive attitude towards work when all the problems of the country seem so large and ineradicable.

“You do ask yourself ‘Is what I’m doing making a difference at all? Will these problems ever be alleviated?’ But, I’m a person of hope and I’ve never met a person where I thought their situation was hopeless,” she says. “It is hard at times when there are all these voices clamouring at you, but I rely on my faith. Even when I feel like I can’t put one foot forward, I feel like I’m given something to help me carry on.”

And, it could be one small experience, or a tiny gesture that changes your perspective on life. Van Duinen recalls when she would go to visit the Salvation Army’s Booth Centre, she would always park her car in the back, and use the rear entrance. Every visit there was a man in a wheelchair, parked out front as if he was part of the furniture. But, she says, he always had a smile on his face and something optimistic to say.

“Whatever brought him there and caused him to stay so long doesn’t matter. He loves the Booth Centre and it’s clear to me that he has found his place and to him that’s enough,” says Van Duinen. “Through the dark, in the good, you can be solid.”

Local Cheerleader

With her three-year-old son strapped into his car seat, Sherri Walsh began her position as a volunteer with Winnipeg Harvest driving around, collecting cans of food from grocery stores. Since those first traveling days, she has gone on to join the board of directors and is currently in her second term as president of the board.

Walsh, who admits her favourite part of the “job” is hanging out with the volunteers in the warehouse, is also a full-time lawyer, and she brought a new understanding of the anti-poverty movement to the table.

“As a lawyer I am very interested in human rights, this is my area of expertise, and I really want to impart the concept that food is a basic human right,” says Walsh. “It goes hand in hand with shelter needs. We really want to focus on the anti-poverty movement, without reduction of our food distribution.”

And the number of Winnipeggers who are exercising their human rights through the organization is staggering. Winnipeg Harvest feeds over 33,000 people a month, half of whom are children. One of Walsh’s goals is to help dispel the myths and stereotypes about people who use the food bank.

“Homeless people make up the lowest percentage of users,” she states. “Most of the people that are coming to us have two jobs, maybe one full-time, one part-time, and they are literally struggling to feed their family. It’s not people that are just looking for a free meal. It’s widows and seniors and people that don’t have any leeway with their food budget. It’s the working poor.”

She admits it may be daunting to look at the big picture, trying to solve Winnipeg’s hunger and poverty problems, but you have to approach it in a practical manner.

“You have to be realistic and pragmatic. We know we can’t completely solve Winnipeg’s poverty problem, so we pick an issue and work at it, and every little bit that helps solve that issue is what counts,” she says. “From people who drive the food trucks, to the person who drops off cans, it all counts.”

This is where the bright, bold ray of hope comes to Walsh. Winnipeg Harvest has only 14 staff members, but over 3,000 volunteers, and half of those volunteers are clients of the food bank.

“We’re not an organization of taking something, we’re a place of giving, of giving back to the community,” she says. “When I walk through Winnipeg Harvest I get elated, it’s transformative being there. What you sense is a real understanding of community and there’s a spirit there that makes you feel good.”

While the organization’s holiday food drive adds a little extra cheer, Walsh says it’s only a small part of the big picture, and the need is ongoing. For example, Winnipeg Harvest broke a Guinness World Record for the most food collected in 24 hours last October. While 186,000 tons was brought in, all that food was gone by spring.

Walsh suggests another great way to help is by donating money.

“Through the magic of David Northcott one dollar can be turned into $20 of food to be distributed,” she says. “There is always a need, regardless of season.”
Walsh adds that many people don’t realize their donations amount to more than just food. The organization also includes services such as helping their clients with tax returns in order to receive certain credits they might not have known about, or even something as simple as being an advocate on a phone call to a social worker.

“I am such a big cheerleader for what we do, and I try to introduce as many different types of people to Winnipeg Harvest,” she says. “We’re like one large community centre and I’m so happy and proud to be part of it.”

Portrait and warehouse photography by chronic creative