While Australia is a wealthy country, there is a growing sense of an underclass of people emerging, trapped in a cycle of poverty and despair. Challenges to be addressed in relation to this are the high levels of unemployment, homelessness, a crisis in our ability to care for older people, family breakdown and conflict, alarming levels of domestic violence and sexual abuse, inadequate provision for the mentally ill, and problems arising from drug, alcohol and gambling related addictions.
	The Salvation Army - affectionately known as ‘the Salvos’ - is one of this country’s most well-loved organisations, with research revealing it is by far the most highly thought of charity in Australia. The Salvation Army’s ‘Christianity with its sleeves rolled up’ ethos has endeared it to the Australian public, in a country where religion has always struggled to gain acceptance. A reputation for being at the frontline of need was largely achieved through the strong presence of Salvation Army officers amongst Australian armed forces in times of war.  Assisting the troops, burying the dead, and dispensing cups of tea, the Salvos were considered to be as much a part of the fighting forces as the soldiers themselves. The battle has not ended, and in times of emergency and national disaster today, the Salvos are still there, offering comfort and support. During the rural crisis of recent years, Salvation Army rural chaplains have travelled from farm to farm, offering practical assistance, spiritual care, and a listening ear to drought-stricken farmers. When a landslide claimed 17 lives in the New South Wales ski village of Thredbo during 1997, the Salvos assisted in the rescue effort and helped rescue-workers, volunteers, and families of victims by providing a basic catering service, counselling, and chaplaincy support. Over a period of eight days, around 16,000 meals and refreshments were provided. Salvation Army chaplain, Lieut-Colonel Don Woodland also assisted landslide survivor, Stuart Diver and his family, and they have maintained a close friendship. The battle against poverty, addiction and despair rages daily for many Australians, and probably the most important aspect of Salvation Army work is its provision of caring social and rehabilitation services from day to day. Every year throughout Australia The Salvation Army provides (approximately): * $6 million in cash assistance, food and accommodation vouchers to people in need; * Accommodation for 10,000 homeless people; * Rehabilitation facilities for 9,000 people with drug, alcohol or gambling addictions; * Employment and training programs for 2,500 people; * Refuge and shelter for 1,000 women in crisis, often accompanied by their children; * Support for 500 youth ‘at risk’; * 4,500 beds for older Australians.
	The Salvation Army was founded in 1865 in the slums of London by a former Methodist minister, William Booth, who wanted to make the church more accessible to the poor.  Originally known as the Christian Mission, the name ‘The Salvation Army’ was adopted in 1878 and since then the organisation’s structure has been based on military lines. Initially Booth’s Christian Mission intended to gather the poverty-stricken multitudes of London’s East End and link them up with existing churches.  However, such drunken outcasts were not welcomed by the wealthy and respectable church members of the day, and Booth was forced to provide a more permanent organisation for the ongoing spiritual care of his converts. Booth’s concern for the destitute masses of England was not only spiritual.  The more he learned of the plight of the thousands spurned by Britain’s industrial revolution, the more determined he was to see lasting social change. From the Army’s earliest days, various social programs had grown up alongside the mission’s spiritual ministry, including food shops, shelters, and homes for ‘fallen’ girls. However, these were just the first elements in a broad scheme.  In the early 1890s Booth published In Darkest England, an ambitious and complex plan to deliver England from its social woes. Soon Booth opened labour exchange services, which would place thousands of unemployed persons in jobs.  Discovering that some 9,000 people dropped from sight in London each year, he established a missing persons bureau.  He dreamt of a farm colony where derelicts could be given honest labour and pleasant surroundings.  He wanted to establish a poor man’s bank; he offered legal aid to the destitute and he envisaged an emigration scheme which would develop a new overseas colony.  Throughout the 1890s there was a need to find work for the jobless, so the Army created jobs by venturing into business itself. From this began a network of social service which continues today in 103 countries of the world. On September 5, 1880, Edward Saunders and John Gore led the first Salvation Army meeting in Australia from the tailgate of a green grocer’s cart in Adelaide Botanic Park. When Gore said: “If there’s a man here who hasn’t had a square meal today, let him come home to tea with me,” he was expressing the Army’s concern for a person’s physical as well as spiritual needs. From this humble beginning, The Salvation Army grew rapidly in Australia.  Surprisingly, pioneer Salvationists faced rowdy and sometimes violent opposition, with at least two members being fatally injured.  However, by 1890 mob attacks had virtually disappeared and by 1901 Salvationists comprised more than 1% of the population.
	Today, The Salvation Army’s network of caring services is as wide-ranging and diverse as the areas of need in the Australian community. Areas of service include: * Family and community welfare centres providing emergency assistance, including food, clothing, furniture, counselling and referral. * Hostels and supported accommodation facilities for homeless men, women, young people and families in crisis. * Refuges for women and their children fleeing domestic violence situations. * Long term rehabilitation programs for those addicted to alcohol, drugs or gambling. * Child care services and camps for economically disadvantaged children and single mothers. * Youth care centres and outreach programs for those living on the streets. * Telephone counselling, financial and personal counselling, trauma management, grief and suicide support groups. * Court and prison chaplaincy. * Employment and training programs. * Family tracing service to help find missing persons. * Emergency services, providing assistance in times of disaster or emergency. * Chaplains offering support to police, fire brigade, emergencies and defence forces personnel. * Rural chaplains. * Outback flying service. * English speaking classes for migrants. * Aged care services including nursing homes and hostel care. * Social education, training and supported accommodation for intellectually disabled people. * Visitation to hospitals, nursing homes and people ‘shut-in’ in their own homes.
	The Salvation Army in Australia is increasingly being regarded by governments, business and the community as a model of how social welfare, drug rehabilitation and youth support should be provided. For example, The Salvation Army has been given an important role in the provision of employment services as part of the Federal Government’s new Job Network, with The Salvation Army Employment Plus operating 63 sites nationally.  The service focuses primarily on the long-term unemployed, and helped 6,400 people find work in its first six months operating. The Salvation Army’s Bridge Program is also leading the way in drug, alcohol and gambling rehabilitation, with the program expanding significantly in recent years to accommodate increased demand. In this regard, the Army has conducted extensive media campaigns highlighting the dangers of drug use in our community, and advocating the ideal of a drug-free society. These campaigns have generated widespread coverage in all forms of media, including hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of free advertising space given by newspapers, television, and radio networks.  The highly successful ‘Addicted to Life’ awareness campaign was particularly well-received by the media and wider community. Similarly, in response to the increasing problem of youth homelessness in our community a media awareness campaign - ‘Back on Track’ - was launched during 1998 to highlight the issue and offer a way out for street kids. The Salvation Army has a network of youth care centres and outreach programs throughout Australia which mainly target chronically homeless young people, although the Army also assists young runaways before they become entrenched in homelessness.
	Each year The Salvation Army launches an integrated communication campaign to promote its Red Shield Appeal fundraising drive, which includes a business appeal, direct mail campaign and a national doorknock weekend. The communication campaign utilises not only main media such as television, radio, press, outdoor, bus sides, magazine and cinema, but also links into other communication techniques such as 13 telemarketing numbers, sales promotion ideas, McDonald’s traymats, promotional videos and direct response mailing. All advertising time and space given to The Salvation Army is donated free of charge by the media which helps ensure that 85 cents in every dollar donated to the Army goes directly to the point of need. Hard-hitting advertisements and publicity materials address contemporary issues, highlighting the needs of street kids, the homeless, families in crisis and those affected by drugs. Recently, The Salvation Army has also continued to generate awareness throughout the year regarding its wide range of community services. An example of this was the widely publicised anti-drug and alcohol abuse campaign promoting the Army’s ‘Bridge’ rehabilitation program.
	Research reveals that the popular Salvation Army slogan ‘Thank God for the Salvos’ has almost total recognition amongst the Australian public, achieving 98% aided awareness. The Salvation Army consistently comes out in research as the charity people would most like to donate to (named spontaneously). Similarly the Red Shield logo is widely recognised, even sought after by companies wishing to link their brand with this solid emblem of caring social service. The uniform also gives the Salvos a very visible presence, often creating a sense that they are ‘everywhere’, although uniformed Salvationists are actually a very small percentage of the Australian population.

THE SALVATION ARMY
		85 cents in every dollar donated to The Salvation Army goes directly to those in need.  This is one of the most efficient rates of any charity in Australia.
		The name of the popular biscuit by Arnotts, SAO, stands for ‘Salvation Army Officer’.
		The first moving picture film in Australia, ‘Soldiers of the Cross’, was made by The Salvation Army.
		Red-tipped ‘safety matches’ were introduced by The Salvation Army in England during the 1890s at a time when matches were still produced using poisonous yellow phosphorus which caused the fatal disease ‘Phossy Jaw’ in poor factory workers.
		The Salvation Army successfully campaigned to have the age of consent in the UK raised from 13 years of age to 16 years during 1885.
		‘Strawberry Field’ was a Salvation Army children’s home where John Lennon of The Beatles spent time as a child.