Almaden Resident

Cover Story

Photograph by Vicki Thompson

Recycled Textiles: Capt. Stephen Sutter, Salvation Army administrator and pastor, points out a price tag hanging from clothing that has been compressed and recycled with other textiles into a 12,000-pound bale. The bales, made of torn or soiled clothing that can't be sold, are shipped overseas and recycled for various uses.

Finding Salvation

Local thrift store donations help rehabilitate residents year-round

By Tiffany Carney and Anne Gelhaus

In this age of Internet-driven giving, the Salvation Army still counts on a physical presence to collect holiday donations.

Each December, the international nonprofit agency maintains a local presence at area malls with its holiday giving trees, allowing shoppers to give gifts to children and teens whose families might not otherwise be able to afford them. Westfield Valley Fair has participated in the program for three years; the mall boasts two giving trees, one for teens and another for younger children.

Westfield Oakridge has participated in the program for about 10 years; its giving tree generates thousands of donations for families in San Jose and Santa Clara. Liwayway Jimenez, volunteer coordinator for the local Salvation Army, says the Oakridge tree generates so many donations that extra pickups have to be scheduled to accommodate them. She said the Oakridge giving tree has typically ranked among the most successful of the 60-plus trees in the area each holiday. This season was no exception.

"Some people have made selecting a toy from the tree a tradition," Jimenez adds.

Families served by the giving tree gathered Dec. 19-20 at the Salvation Army's Toy and Joy Store to receive their presents. The store operates at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds during the month of December.

While the spirit of the holiday season tends to move more people to make such charitable donations, the Salvation Army counts on year-round donations to its thrift stores to make a difference in the lives of local residents. Like monetary contributions, the number of items dropped off at its main location on Taylor Street in the Rose Garden neighborhood tends to spike during the holidays, and sales also increase from mid-November through mid-January, says Salvation Army Capt. Steve Sutter, an administrator at the site. The nonprofit agency also makes hundreds of daily pickups from homes and businesses in neighborhoods throughout San Jose and surrounding counties with its trucks, which are brought back to Taylor Street, where the items are sorted and distributed to various Salvation Army sites.

"We're thankful for this time of year because it helps us pay our bills," Sutter says. "Before Christmas, people are anticipating getting gifts so they clean out their closets. Afterward, people are making room for their Christmas items."

Sutter says the nonprofit processes an average of 30,000 donated items every day at its Taylor Street location; 10,000 of these items are clothing.

"The amount of clothing we take in is a constant," Sutter adds. "It's other items, like furniture and household appliances, that fluctuate."

Donated items come to the two-story warehouse on Taylor Street from Santa Clara, Monterey and Santa Cruz counties. The items are sorted--some on a conveyor belt--organized by category, priced and stored in areas called shops before being shipped out to other Salvation Army stores such as the one on Winchester Boulevard in San Jose. The low-priced, tax-free items are then sorted and displayed on the showroom floor. During the holidays, the store's displays of Christmas trees and lights are also for sale. Items that are not in good enough condition to be sold are recycled. An on-site press condenses piles of garments into 12,000-pound square bales that are sold overseas for various uses. The Salvation Army brings in about $7 million annually from the sale of items at its nine Bay Area stores.

Proceeds from sales at these local thrift stores support programs at the men's Adult Rehabilitation Center on Taylor Street, adjacent to the main store. There is space for 102 men at the facility.

Manager Brian O'Shea, a longtime San Jose resident, has been working at the Winchester store for three years. After fighting a hard battle with drug and alcohol addiction, O'Shea, 51, graduated from the six-month ARC program in 2001.

At the ARC, men are provided with meals, religious services, physical activities and programs for the treatment of drug and alcohol addiction.

As part of the rehabilitation program, the men are also given job assignments at Salvation Army to help them make the transition back into the working world. Most men in the program start by unloading donation trucks, sorting items and working as cashiers at the Taylor Street store.

"It is something that is needed to start feeling positive about yourself. Some of these guys came from a low point in their lives, and this is a new beginning," O'Shea says.

Shortly after graduation, O'Shea was transferred to the Salvation Army store on Winchester Boulevard, where he started as a clerk and was eventually promoted to manager. His job duties include scheduling, arranging items in the showroom and marketing items for sale.

The store offers savvy shoppers a chance to buy holiday presents they'll feel good about giving, says San Jose resident Christian Woodland, 34, who has been working at the store for about two months. Woodland says he takes pride in knowing that the Salvation Army offers quality items at low prices.

"It's about helping other people and serving other people; it's not about greed, and that's what I love about it," says Woodland, adding that the store offers a positive working environment for men enrolled in the ARC program.

Presently there are four men from the ARC program working at the Winchester store, two of whom play in the program's band.

Each participant in the ARC program has to be willing to change his friends, social life and activities in order to be successful in and out of the program, O'Shea says.

O'Shea has done just that by submerging himself in his work, surrounding himself with positive support and being a mentor to others.

O'Shea and Woodland have a similar background, work ethic and dry sense of humor. They also encourage each other to make positive decisions in their everyday lives.

A former insurance broker, Woodland dealt with stressful situations and technical frustrations during the 14 years he spent in that profession. He says his current job at the Salvation Army store is much more rewarding.

While he knows his isn't the most lucrative line of work, O'Shea says he enjoys being a mentor to the men who come out of the program, as well as the benefits of giving back to the community.

When O'Shea has a day off, he participates in a newfound addiction--golf. He also stays involved with the ARC program by attending social activities there.

The ARC hosts events for both current and former program participants. These events include a Thanksgiving dinner, as well as Christmas and New Year's parties.

Besides providing a social outlet, the Salvation Army offers programs designed to help these men succeed outside the ARC. Most recently, the ARC offered a reading program, and a GED program is in the works.

The Salvation Army's next goal is to create a similar facility for women struggling with drug and alcohol addiction. With continued support from the community and donations to their stores, local staffers say it can be done.

Salvation Army stores and donation stations are at 1522 S. Winchester Blvd. and 760 W. Taylor St. Hours: Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

By Anne Gelhaus

It's been more than 100 years since the first Salvation Army pot was set up in the Bay Area to collect holiday donations. Since then, the red kettle has become a harbinger of the holiday season.

"Once people see them at the entrance of the grocery store, they know Christmas is coming," said Salvation Army Capt. Rene Carcamo, who coordinates the red-kettle fundraiser for Santa Clara County.

The fundraiser was the brainchild of another Salvation Army captain, Joseph McFee, who in 1891 placed a pot at the Oakland Ferry Landing to collect money for a Christmas dinner for poor people in the area. McFee got the idea from his days as a sailor in Liverpool, England, where passengers of boats that docked at Stage Landing tossed coins in a large kettle to help the poor.

McFee's idea spread, and in 1897, the Salvation Army's kettle drive brought in enough money to fund 150,000 Christmas dinners for the poor nationwide.

In modern-day Santa Clara County, funds collected in the red kettles buy toys and food for local families, as well as backpacks for students at the start of each school year. Kettles, overseen by bell-ringers, are found in front of area Mervyn's, Trader Joe's, Safeway, Albertsons, SaveMart and Walmart stores. Carcamo said the kettle in front of Macy's at Westfield Valley Fair has been a strong collection point this holiday season.

Bell ringing used to be a volunteer position, but Carcamo said it's hard nowadays to find people willing and able to keep the bells ringing for the entire holiday season, even if they're paid. This year the Salvation Army employed 75 bell-ringers throughout the county. Two weeks before Christmas, their numbers were down to 31; Carcamo said some workers would show up once and decide they didn't want the job.

The drop in the number of bell-ringers has contributed in part to a drop in donations this year. As of last week, kettle collections stood at $111,000, down from $170,000 last year.

Despite this decrease, Carcamo said it still does his heart good to see holiday shoppers give their change to the Salvation Army.

"I've seen kids and teenagers put money in the kettle this year," he adds. "That's something I haven't seen in years."