MINOT—John Woodard, the captain of the Minot area Salvation army, shared his passion for what he does, and his specific thoughts on giving in the Minot area.
After Woodard and his wife, Faith, moved from Danville, Illinois, to Minot, North Dakota, about two years ago, Woodard says he has noticed a difference in the two cities. “Danville, Illinois, which is three hours south of Chicago, has a lot of big city issues. But here it kind of sits alone. So you would think that it’s not as in tune with the needs in the community, but when I came here, I was very surprised at that. I was around big cities all my life. For me to come here, I was kind of thinking it would be less hustle and bustle, less of a need, but when I came here, it was amazing to me. The way people want to give, the way they want to come together. Minot’s done better than other places in the nation.”
"The way people want to give, the way they want to come together. Minot’s done better than other places in the nation.” John Woodard, Minot Salvation Army
Woodard says that the Salvation Army has been in the Minot area for about 100 years, and he is surprised at the number of ministries in Minot. “They give, and they give tremendously. How these people give to all these entities is amazing to me.”
The Salvation Army in Minot works with the Homeless Coalition, the Minot Area Men’s Winter Refuge, Project BEE, and many more.
Woodard explained his philosophy on the strategy of giving and how it has changed over the years, “[The younger generation] want[s] to give, but not for a long time. Baby boomers, they’ll give to the same organization. What [the younger generation] does, is basically ‘I wanna help with this, but I also wanna help with this and this,’ and that’s a different way of thinking when it comes to philanthropic opportunities for people. It’s a strategy of how to give. If you want to give to the Salvation Army, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not giving to Project BEE. Working together is what God wants us to do, because that’s what Jesus said in the Bible, whether you believe it or you don’t. That philanthropic attitude has to come out of [the younger] generation more because [they’re] the future.”
The Salvation Army was founded by William Booth and his wife Catherine Booth in 1865. In 1860, it started as a simple Christian mission in the eastern part of London, a very impoverished area. “I believe he was a social service genius, and he was ahead of his time,” said Woodard. “[Anglicans of that time thought] If you’re [poor] you’ve done something against God. [Booth] believed that if you give a person their self-respect, and you gave a person a job, and you give them food, and you give them the life essentials that they need, which he coined ‘soup, soap, and salvation’, in particularly that order, and that was his motivation, that’s what he did for people, and that’s how you have the Salvation Army.”
"We are motivated by the love of God."Woodard
The Salvation Army is in 136 countries, as well as every major city in America. “We are motivated by the love of God. We want them to understand that God can help them become the person that he intended them to be, and that’s our mission, and we do that without discrimination,” said Woodard. “Women and men were brought together, and they were able to bring this ministry and just expand it.”
Woodard spoke of those who are in a difficult cycle of poverty, “What you do is you help that person, and you do it through the love of God, and say ‘I wanna help you through this’ and then that motivation and that example through the love of Jesus Christ opens up that person’s mind to who God is, changes his heart, changes his mind, and that’s the motivation, that’s the focus, of the Salvation Army.”
Both Woodard and his wife are 5th generation salvationists, having been officers for 8 years, and volunteers their whole life. “Giving back to the Salvation Army was easy for us, because that was our church. I was almost born in the Salvation Army church,” said Woodard.
“What the Salvation Army means to me is others, always serving others." Faith Woodard, Minot Salvation Army
“What the Salvation Army means to me is others, always serving others. And that’s how we raised our five children, is serving others,” said Faith Woodard, co-captain of the Minot Salvation Army with her husband. “The mission is right in the name, ‘Salvation’, and that is our goal, is to save people by the love of Jesus Christ.”
The divisional headquarters for the Central Territory is in Minnesota. There is also a Western territory, and a Southern, which includes Florida and Virginia. Above Virginia is the Eastern Territory, which includes states such as New York, Maine, and Vermont.
For more information visit the Minot Salvation Army's website, or contact them at (701) 838-8925 or john.woodard@usc.salvationarmy.org.
