“The story of The Salvation Army is the story of the heart of William Booth,” said National Advisory Board member Sally Harris who, with Jonathan Kilmer, is co-chair of the upcoming National Advisory Organizations Conference (NAOC).
The conference will be held April 29-May 2, 1999 in Pasadena, Calif.
Harris has developed an innovative plenary session, “Salvation Army 101,” to tell the Army’s story to conference delegates through a documentary film using actual Salvation Army historical photo and film footage.
Resources include The Salvation Army Western Territorial Museum, the Library of Congress, the Army’s International Heritage Centre in London, and The Salvation Army’s National Archives. Historical characters, including William and Catherine Booth, will “narrate” the film.
The documentary will begin with the question, “What is The Salvation Army historically?” and serve as a launching point for General Paul A. Rader to address delegates on, “Where is The Salvation Army going today?”
“Sally gives board members what they need to know about The Salvation Army,” said Lt. Colonel Tom Jones, national community relations and development secretary. “She is doing something we have longed to do.”
Jones notes the conference will provide practical information delegates can take home and use in their advisory boards. “Instead of having different tracks, workshops are broken down by community size (under 100,000; 100-500,000; more than 500,000). This way, delegates can have information geared to their own communities.”
This is the sixth NAOC, and the first to be held in the Western Territory.