A Young Boy and his Family Find Hope with The Salvation Army
When 10-year-old Louis entered the Providence Salvation Army, he approached the Social Work office with reticence. Everything about this new land was strange, different - even frightening. He was with his mother and his two siblings. Also accompanying Louis and his family was a refugee liaison from a local church, but even that offered limited comfort.
His family had just made an exhausting journey, beginning in the Dominican Republic, then traveling to Panama, Brazil, and Mexico. Once the family made it to the United States, they eventually found themselves in Providence.
Once Louis and his family arrived in Providence, they found residence in the basement of the house of another refugee family. The local church liaison brought them to The Salvation Army where they were given new coats and clothing vouchers, which they desperately needed. They had no food at all so The Salvation Army officer went to the food pantry to provide the family with several large bags of food.
As The Salvation Army officer was returning to the office with food for the family, she noticed a large supply of new toys that were left over from a Christmas Toy Drive. She stooped down and picked out three to four toys for each child in the family. As she entered her office once again, the apprehension that had marked Louis’s entrance disappeared and the officer was greeted with the tightest hug any 10-year-old boy could possibly muster.
The family left with a greater level of hope than they had entered with and Louis, along with his siblings, would enjoy some age-appropriate entertainment that night.