Stan a fan of the Salvos

To help those in greatest need, New Zealand-born singer, Stan Walker threw his support behind the 2013 Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal.

Stan embraced the role of 2013 Red Shield Appeal Ambassador because the Salvos are “about bringing hope to people”.

Stan, who featured in several TV commercials and other promotional material for the Red Shield Appeal, says he has always been a “huge” supporter of The Salvation Army.

His new single, Take It Easy, featured in the Red Shield Appeal commercials and the lyric “you and me together” from the song was adopted as the theme for the campaign.

Following the appeal, including the doorknock campaign, Salvation Army spokesperson Major Bruce Harmer offered a heartfelt “thank you” to individuals, corporations and celebrity supporters for helping make a positive impact in the lives of more than a million people in crisis each year.

“We thank Australians for their tremendous generosity towards The Salvation Army,” he says.

“We also thank the many thousands of volunteers who assisted us with the doorknock, to help raise vital funds. In particular, we were encouraged by the number of young people who chose to volunteer.”

Appeal brings hope

The appeal is the major fundraising event for The Salvation Army annually and enables it to help those most in need.

In the past 12 months, this included helping over 230,000 people through provision of emergency relief; providing more than 100,000 meals; and nightly provision of more than 1000 crisis and 6000 non-crisis beds.

According to Major Harmer, the level of poverty and need within the community, including among a significant number of families with children, singleparent families and retirees, continues to grow and ongoing support is always urgently needed.

“We know many Australians are struggling to make ends meet and household budgets have been impacted by increasing costs of living,” he says.

“Data released by The Salvation Army recently indicated that 2705 of our clients who were surveyed, 66 per cent had cut down on basic necessities; 28 per cent could not even afford a substantial meal once a day (but would make sure their children were fed); 27 per cent couldn’t afford heating in just one room of the house, and 58 per cent couldn’t pay utility bills on time.

“It is to meet these and many other needs faced by everyday Australians that The Salvation Army still urgently needs ongoing public support.”