Listen to this article
Fundraising effort will help build new facility.
By Laine Hendricks
The Salvation Army Bishop (Calif.) Corps is asking the community to help raise $1 million for the construction of a new facility to centralize all of the corps’ operations and expand its services in Owens Valley, alleviating the need to rent space.
The campaign, announced Oct. 10, comes just two years after the local operation achieved corps status and revealed its plans to build the new facility. Nearly $265,000 from private donors helped launch the fundraising effort.
“The community will benefit so much from this new building,” said Lt. Cathie McCulley, Bishop corps officer. “The Salvation Army is more than just a church, more than just a social service and more than just a thrift store. We work tirelessly to meet human need. Having this new facility will allow us to free up funds and have more space to serve the community’s needs even more.”
In this community, the Army provides food, clothing, health services, shelter, volunteer job training, youth programs, marital and personal counseling, a rehabilitation program and referrals. During the holidays, it provides meals, food boxes, clothing and toys to families and individuals in need. A team of disaster response trained volunteers is on standby, ready to deploy and assist with both local and regional disasters, including forest fires and large-scale accidents on Highway 395. And finally, the Army offers affordable goods through its Family Thrift Store, with sales funding the adult rehabilitation program.
“This new facility will be an enhancement to Bishop and allow The Salvation Army to be more efficient and effective in the delivery of the essential services that Bishop and the entire eastern Sierra need,” said Tom Hallenbeck, chairperson of the Bishop Salvation Army Advisory Board.
