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“Sacred space” is evident at the Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center.
by Cindy Foley, Major –
As Kroc Center facilities continue to open across the U.S., children and adults of all ages are experiencing the love of God expressed through programs that celebrate the arts, education and recreation and through spiritual programming.
And people are beginning to take notice.
In May 2010, Recreation Management magazine announced that The Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Center in Salem, Oregon, is a winner of the Innovative Architecture and Design Award for 2010, which recognizes creativity and craftsmanship that allows recreation facilities to provide programs and services with excellence.
“This award affirms what everyone who visits our facility already knows. The Kroc Center is an amazing place that reflects our Oregon culture, values and beauty while its functional design optimizes our opportunity to promote wellness, encourage excellence, build character and inspire faith,” Major Donna Ames, executive director of the center, said.
The 10.6-acre center provides services to over 1,000 people every day. Two years ago it was an abandoned area near the railroad tracks; today, it is a facility whose programming is heralded in everything from the newspaper to hotel directories. This award is a celebration of what The Salvation Army has always done—take available space and transform it for God’s purpose.
“At the new Salem Kroc Center, the mission of The Salvation Army is being carried out in the 21st century by four key actions: Promoting Wellness, Encouraging Excellence, Building Character and Inspiring Faith,” said Steve Blackburn, of Barker Rinker Seacat Architecture, building designers for the center. “The Salvation Army staff is implementing these action statements throughout the 92,000 square foot center and site, essentially transforming the whole center into a sacred space on the north side of Oregon’s capitol city.”
Take available space and make it sacred, that’s what the Salem Kroc Center does.