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‘It works well for the need': Salvation Army celebrates century of service in Saskatoon
Saturday marked the 100th anniversary of the Salvation Army and its work in Saskatoon. The milestone was celebrated with a street fair at its Avenue C location.
The Salvation Army Saskatoon Temple Brass Band kicked off festivities, and the event featured Mayor Cynthia Block, MLA for Saskatoon Southeast Brittney Senger, and Saskatoon West Member of Parliament Brad Redekopp.
Services have been offered to the community out of the current building on the corner of Avenue C and 19th Street since 1925.
Crossroads Residential Services executive director Major Gord Taylor told CTV News it would be interesting to know why this location was chosen a hundred years ago, since the location now is so crucial to the needs of the core community.
'It works well for the need. Now, we're kind of between downtown and the Pleasant Hill neighbourhood, and we get people from both directions who need help, and we're able to help them out and do the best we can,' he said.
Gordon Taylor
Gordon Taylor, a member of the Salvation Army Saskatoon Temple Brass Band, performs during Saturday's celebration. (Carla Shynkaruk/CTV News)
While the Salvation Army has been operating in Saskatoon since the late 1800s, the Riversdale building has served many purposes over the years. It was a thrift store, a family services center, and an addiction treatment program.
The Crossroads building currently operates as a 75-bed emergency men's shelter, as well as transitional housing, a warming shelter, and a group home.
The work the Salvation Army has done has evolved and changed with the times, but currently the type of drug addiction being seen on the streets is a challenge it's working every day to tackle.
'The biggest change I've seen is the type of drugs that are out there on the street, and the type of effect they have on people's behavior—that's been the most challenging change I've seen, which has caused a lot of the problems we're seeing in most communities across the country,' Taylor said.
Staff gave tours of the facility throughout the afternoon, including a historical display of the Salvation Army's work out of the building dating back to 1925.
The Salvation Army is an international Christian organization that is the largest non-governmental direct provider of social services in Canada.
