Born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., Shawn McEwan has been volunteering with the Salvation Army food bank for 15 years.

After facing serious health challenges, Elizabeth, a single mother, struggled to provide for her two children. Remembering her previous connection to The Salvation Army, she reached out for help. “They genuinely care,” Elizabeth says. “That made all the difference.”

Hidden underneath Nate Bargatze's new book Big Dumb Eyes is a Big Dumb Heart. In the chapter “Raised by a Clown,” Nate tells some stories about his father. There are some funny sections about kids’ birthday parties and high school girlfriends, but the real heart comes out in relation to his own father’s upbringing.

Former San Jose Sharks centre Ryan Carpenter had hockey in his blood. But as a Christian, he welcomes the opportunity to share his testimony with others, and he writes “Romans 5:8” on every hockey stick he uses. “It’s a very simple way of sharing the gospel with others. I’m very thankful the love of God is always the same toward us, when we’re getting it right and even when we’re not.”

Open to youth aged12 to 17, the Kids' Cooking Club at The Salvation Army Suncoast Citadel in Goderich, Ont., to provides hands-on experience in meal preparation while teaching essential food-handling knowledge and kitchen safety skills.

To some, a haircut might seem like a simple thing, but to Ellie Ollenberger andthose she helps, it’s a gift of hope. The 22-year-old hair stylist at Bromley Hair Lounge in Maple Ridge, B.C., volunteers to cut hair at The Salvation Army’s Ridge Meadows Ministries. “Giving back to my community is one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done,” she says.

In this second article on the Beatitudes, key teaching from the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5-7), Jesus comforts those who mourn.

Light of the World, in theatres now, is an animated film about the ministry of Jesus, told through the eyes of the Apostle John, who is widely believed to have been the youngest of Jesus’ 12 disciples.

“I’d always gravitated toward children with special needs, children who are extremely vulnerable,” teacher Lori Barry explains. “These children need so much attention, but they often fall between the cracks.” Lori has been teaching now for 30 years, most of that time in special education. “I’ve spent a career teaching the children that no one else wanted to teach, that no one wanted to commit to—and they’ve changed my life.”

Do you have ny wishes? When Phil Callaway thinks of wishes these days, he think of my grandkids.