MURRAY — A new, fully equipped emergency response trailer is on display in the center court of Fashion Place Mall this week in recognition of National Salvation Army Week.
"Each day, the Army has fed, housed and clothed those in need," Alexander Morrison, Salvation Army local advisory board chairman, said in a Tuesday afternoon ceremony to kick off the special week.
Morrison spoke of how the Salvation Army gave doughnuts to soldiers in World War I, provided refreshment to the rescue workers in the aftermath of Sept. 11 and feeds the homeless in the Salt Lake Valley each day.
"From its inception, the Army has felt a particular obligation to help the poor and needy, the downtrodden, those beaten down by life — whose hopes and dreams have turned to ashes, or at least been seriously derailed," he said.
The keynote speaker for the event was Pamela Atkinson, former member of the Utah State Board of Regents and an advocate for Utah's poor and homeless.
She said she was once told that shaking the hands of the homeless might be the only time they have been touched in more than a week's time. She now makes it a priority to shake the hands of all her "homeless friends" who come to eat at the St. Vincent De Paul's soup kitchen, located at the corner of 200 South and Rio Grande Street.
"They come to the Salvation Army looking for more than a good meal. They come looking for hope. They come looking for treatment with dignity," Atkinson said.
The kitchen, run entirely by volunteers, serves dinner to between 300 and 500 homeless and needy patrons every evening.
"We have quite the slice of society," she said. "You get former teachers, former professionals, and I've even met former politicians going through the line."
Sixty percent of the homeless served at the kitchen are native to Utah, which has a rating in hunger polls as fourth worst in the country. Atkinson said Utah has a large population of "near homeless," those who are only one paycheck away from being homeless, and who sacrifice rent money for necessary food and transportation costs.
The Salvation Army provides those in need with a second chance at life.
In 1973, Toni Frazier was abandoned with her three children in Pocatello, Idaho, for four days until a man from the Salvation Army approached her and offered help.
"He didn't just give you things, you had to earn them," Frazier said of the man who led her back to success. "He basically helped me learn the things I needed to do."
Frazier went back to school for an accounting degree. She now works for the Salvation Army and resides in Murray. She and her children, who were once homeless, are now successful adults.
"I'm devoted to teaching other homeless they can do it, too," Frazier said.
"I think the Salvation Army helps us remember that the smallest good deed is far better than the grandest intention," Atkinson said.
Other speakers included Brian Farr, chief council to Gov. Olene Walker, who presented to the local chapter a formal thanks and declared May 11 as Salvation Army Day in Utah.
As part of the local recognition of National Salvation Army Week, doughnuts will be delivered this morning to veterans living at the VA nursing home at 700 S. Foothill Blvd. in Salt Lake City. Salvation Army representatives will be available for volunteer recruitment and assistance from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday at the Fashion Place Mall. The emergency response vehicle will remain at the mall until Sunday.
E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com