Turning buckets of service into buckets of joy
Alexis Selvera
On Saturday, January 27, 2018, more than 550 volunteers from across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex met at the Salvation Army warehouse in Arlington for a day of service, putting together over 4,600 clean-up kits for Salvation Army’s natural disaster unit.
The service project was posted on JustServe.org, an online platform that links community needs and service opportunities to volunteers, where willing individuals and groups signed up. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints spread the word in congregations throughout the area about the Salvation Army volunteer opportunity and had a great response from members.
This is the second clean-up kit event JustServe has hosted in partnership with the Salvation Army. The first was in October 2017, shortly after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) contracted with The Salvation Army of Dallas to create 30,000 clean-up kits at their Arlington warehouse.
The clean-up kits travel to wherever the current disaster is and contain items that one would need after a natural disaster, including mop heads, trash bags, bleach, gloves and other essential items.
Elizabeth Andrus, Volunteer Coordinator for Salvation Army Dallas, said that after Hurricane Harvey, their warehouse’s entire stock of clean-up kits was depleted.
“That is why having the clean up bucket build project was so important for us – so that we could be prepared for future disasters,” Andrus said. 
So far, more than 10,000 kits have been created, by both volunteers and temp employees at the warehouse.
According to Andrus, the work the volunteers did on Saturday saved the Salvation Army approximately $20,000 in labor costs, which would have been taken out of their disaster response funds.
Decator Richardson, who has worked at the warehouse for five months, said there was a specific reason why he chose to take this job.
“I want to work at a place where I can give back,” said Richardson. “My wife works at a Salvation Army shelter in Fort Worth and she loves it. If people need our help, Salvation Army is where they need to come.”
Terry Peal was a part of the hard-working volunteer group from the LDS church on Saturday. He assisted in cutting down boxes, moving buckets and closing the tightly-sealed lids.
“It’s amazing how different groups are coming together to fulfill community needs,” Peal said. “A small act of service puts a drop in a bucket, which eventually adds up when we all come together to help.”
Simon Chavez and his wife, who have been to Houston twice since Hurricane Harvey with the LDS church for volunteer efforts, came from Midlothian to help at the warehouse.
“It feels good when you serve others,” Chavez said.
The next clean- up kit service project for Salvation Army will be on Saturday, February 24th with the goal to complete 10,000 kits that day. You can sign up now JustServe.org
If you are interested in scheduling a day of service at the Salvation Army warehouse in Arlington, contact Elizabeth Andrus at 214-637-8275
