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ANGOLA—Salvationists celebrated in Luanda, the capital of Angola, as the Chief of the Staff, Commissioner Robin Dunster, elevated the country from region to command status. The Chief was formerly territorial commander of the then Congo (Kinshasa) and Angola Territory.
A local journalist interviewed Dunster—this is important as it told Angolans what The Salvation Army stands for and what its prospects are. The Army in Angola is only 22 years old, and therefore is not well known to many people there.
After Dunster and Lt. Colonel Edna Williams (from International Headquarters) led officers’ councils, a soldiers meeting began. Slated to end at 6:30 p.m., the meeting was filled with such joy that it lasted until 8:00 p.m.
Dunster and Williams led worship at separate rallies for men, women and youth. A march of witness preceded the Sunday service; this attracted new people to the meeting.
Besides Salvationists, visitors and government officials attended the elevation ceremony. The Chief of the
Staff installed Lt. Colonels Ambroise and Alphonsine Zola as Angola’s first command leaders.
The weekend included a banquet organized by Salvation Army students who had attended school in Congo (Kinshasa) during the years Angola was torn apart by civil war, and an all-night prayer meeting at Salle Centrale Corps, Palanca.
– From a Salvation Army international news report
FRANCE AND BELGIUM—General Shaw Clifton has announced an administrative merge that will create the France and Belgium Territory, effective in January 2009.
At that time, Belgium will be linked to the France Territory and administered from Territorial Headquarters in Paris.
Antwerp, the only Dutch-speaking city with Army work in Belgium, will receive oversight from the Netherlands and Czech Republic Territory.
The goal is to bring officers and soldiers into the fellowship of a wider Army family and enhance the potential for growth and development.
CANADA—The Salvation Army has initiated a pilot program giving Canadian volunteers the opportunity to make overseas missions trips.
Brian Burditt, director of the Army’s World Missions program in Canada, said, “This program gives everyday people with a strong desire and motivation to help others the opportunity to make contributions in real, constructive and rewarding ways.”
The first to participate, Aine Curran, a small business owner from Toronto, traveled to Tanzania, financing the trip herself. She worked with a team from the Canadian branch of the World Missions office assisting the Army’s social service programs there. The mission will be made into a documentary film about several of the Army’s programs in Tanzania.
Before departing, Curran stated: “I believe this is a meaningful way to be hands on, rather than sitting on the sidelines and hoping someone else will do the work. This is the privilege of a lifetime.”
For details on her mission, visit www.salvationarmy.ca/onamission.