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Grant supports upgrades to 50-year-old shelter in Salem, Ore.
The Salvation Army’s Lighthouse Shelter is a brighter place today thanks to a $40,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation’s Oregon State Giving Program to the Army’s Marion and Polk Counties.
The Walmart Foundation supports organizations that create opportunities for people to live better. This grant—awarded Jan. 18 at the Lighthouse—is funding upgrades to the shelter.
The Lighthouse has been serving the needs of people in Salem and the surrounding communities since 1885 by providing housing, meals and the chance to establish independent living skills. By so doing, the shelter fulfills its mission to aid the homeless without discrimination and to guide them back into a more productive life—all done in a safe, secure, hopeful and helpful atmosphere.
“This grant came at just the right time and will help make necessary improvements in our facility,” Tim Engstrom, social service director, said.
The donation will help provide a new six-burner stove, two commercial-sized washers and dryers, more than 70 mattresses, 35 bed frames and 35 steel storage lockers for residents.
“The Walmart Foundation is pleased to present The Salvation Army with this grant that will provide some of the most needy Salem area residents with access to basic life essentials,” Matti Havener, Walmart regional general manager for Oregon and Washington stores, said. “Our hope is that the new commodities will help these individuals lead healthier, productive lives.”
Major Jerry Ames is the Marion and Polk Counties coordinator.
