"Doing the Most Good.” In these four words, our mission – is to feed, clothe, comfort, care for, and rebuild broken homes and broken lives. By fighting hunger and poverty and providing housing for the unhoused, we can feed and nurture the body and spirit.

The work of The Salvation Army in Pasadena began in 1888. Our mission has always been to meet human needs in God’s name without discrimination. Perhaps one of the most visible ways that The Salvation Army is represented in Pasadena is the annual Salvation Army Brass Band that has been playing for the Pasadena Rose Parade since 1938.

Pasadena is a storied city with a wealth of blessings. Yet, we find there are people in our community who do not have the luxury of family support, a good education, or marketable job skills. In addition, we often find that a lack of affordable housing and skyrocketing childcare and healthcare costs are just a few of the reasons that many find themselves living with a family member, out of a car, or eventually sleeping on the streets.

These are just a few of the reasons why the new Diane and John Mullin Pasadena Hope Center is vitally important for our community. We welcome you to visit the Pasadena Corps to learn about the many ways in which The Salvation Army is serving the Pasadena community daily. From toys for children at Christmas--to sports, low-income housing for seniors, a food pantry, and comprehensive housing services for adults and veterans, including addiction recovery.

We invite you to join us in leaving a legacy through the work of The Salvation Army in Pasadena. Thank you for your consideration.

In partnership and service,

Major's Roy & Paula Wild

“The victories for which we fight in The Salvation Army happen one at a time. Whenever a person comes off the street at night, it’s a victory.Whenever a hungry person receives a hot meal, it’s a victory. Whenever one person has a roof over their head and can live with dignity and with hope, and a future, it’s a very big victory indeed.”

-Commissioner Kenneth G. Hodder, National Commander of The Salvation Army US

Despite The Salvation Army’s steadfast and robust programming in Pasadena, the unmet need in our community continues.

Consider the statistics:

• In Pasadena, over 600 men, women, and children find themselves homeless on any given night.
• The majority are sleeping on the streets or in abandoned buildings in severe living conditions that put their lives at risk.
• Pasadena’s population is approximately 135,000, and 13.2% live in poverty.
• Approximately 20% of Pasadena’s children (and 15% of seniors 65+) live below the poverty line.
• Pasadena prosses one of the highest income inequality values in the Greater Los Angeles region.

Every person has his or her own barriers to housing: a lost job, domestic violence, mental illness, or drug or substance abuse.

To meet these needs, The Salvation Army has built the Diane and John Mullin Hope Center to augment its social services for the community and provide low-income housing and services for previously unhoused adults (many of whom are veterans).

The Salvation Army’s Diane and John Mullin Hope Center more than doubles the existing space available for social service programs and increases supportive services for formerly unhoused individuals.

Facility upgrades in the Diane and John Mullin Hope Center include:

• Converting the Food Pantry into a Choice Pantry enables community members and residents of the Center to select their own food and accommodate senior citizens and individuals with dietary restrictions.
• Enhancing the storage area with a loading dock, commercial-size freezers and refrigerators, and designated areas to store event items such as Back to School backpacks and supplies.
• Expanding the office area to provide more dedicated volunteer space, enclosed offices, one on one client care, and a large receiving and sorting area.
• Expanding our case management services, increasing and enhancing the care we provide to the low-income and unhoused individuals and families that come to us for help and support.

You and your family can support the Pasadena Endowment, making it possible to provide social service programs and housing for the long term and into the future.

An endowment program provides support for operations while bringing stability and long-term sustainability. It consists of assets in cash, appreciated assets, or bequests, which are invested over time to provide permanent support through earned interest. Gifts provided to The Salvation Army’s Pasadena Endowment will be invested and never spent 100 percent. Each year, a distribution of earnings (approximately 4.5%) will be used to provide sustainable, independent funding support for The Salvation Army’s mission in Greater Pasadena. The investment policies are sound and based on U.S. tax laws and nonprofit time-honored principles. The Salvation Army is known for its conservative management of funds.

Supporting The Salvation Army meets the changing needs of our Pasadena community. In addition to alleviating homelessness and providing services to low-income families and veterans, The Salvation Army is “Doing the Most Good” through the Pasadena Tabernacle Corps and Pasadena Hope Center.

Gifts to the Endowment

As we continue to raise funds for the Diane and John Mullin Hope Center and The Salvation Army Pasadena social service programs, we respectfully ask you to consider providing an endowed gift of $100,000 or more. Gifts may be pledged and paid over a 3- or 4-year period or through an estate plan. In recognition of your support, a list of naming opportunities is included for your consideration.

Ways to Give – gifts can be made in honor of yourself, your family, or a loved one:

• Outright Cash Commitments (gifts pledged up to 4 years)
• Gifts of Appreciated Assets
• Bequest
• Combined Cash & Planned Gift
• Charitable Remainder Trust or Gift Annuity

Cash gifts – Cash is the simplest means of making a charitable gift to an endowment. You may receive a charitable tax deduction and support the Army in building the endowment from its earliest stage. Cash gifts may be pledged for up to four years. In honor of your gift, naming recognition opportunities are available at the Pasadena Hope Center.

Bequest gifts – Naming through your Will or Living Trust is another simple means of supporting an endowment. Further, a combined gift of cash and a Bequest allows an opportunity to receive a significant naming opportunity in the Pasadena Hope Center.

The Salvation Army of Pasadena provides services to a family of six.

This family came to The Salvation Army for social services during the pandemic. At the time, the mother, *Mariana, was not working and was pregnant with her fourth child. She was concerned because they did not have money to buy food and items for their baby. The Salvation Army in Pasadena was able to provide a food box each month. We were also able to provide her with many baby items, including a car seat, crib, and some clothes. The family was very grateful. After her baby was born, Mariana came in for a monthly food box. When we asked how everyone was doing, she informed us that her husband was in the hospital with congestive heart failure. She was very worried because she couldn’t work and was recovering from having a C-Section. Her husband had no income. The Salvation Army staff decided that this would be a good family to have as part of our Adopt-A-Family program. We talked to Mariana about it, and she began to cry. She was so grateful for the support and relieved they would have supplies at Christmas. The daughters wrote the sweetest letters thanking us for the items they had received.

Since Christmas, Mariana and her family come in regularly for their food box. We have also helped with job leads, clothing for interviews, and items for the children as needed. Mariana has found employment, and her husband is doing better. Mariana shared how difficult this has been. She says she feels blessed to have The Salvation Army and donors like you to help her and her family. She is appreciative of all that we have done for them and hopes to someday return the favor and volunteer her time.

*Name substituted for privacy

You can become involved in the operation and success of the Hope Center and social services. The Salvation Army in Pasadena services more than 8,000 people each year.

An established social service Endowment will make it possible to continue providing food, housing, after-school programs, and adult recovery services well into the future.

In honor of your generosity, naming recognition opportunities exist at the Diane and John Mullin Hope Center.

Pasadena Legacy Endowment

Our goal is to raise $10,000,000 in endowed funds by 2028, providing approximately $450,000 in annual support directly benefitting The Army’s social services at the Hope Center and low-income families throughout Greater Pasadena.

Annual Budget Supported by the Endowment (approximately $450,000 per year available):

Additional:

Food Pantry, Toys, Food, Bus Vouchers - Gifts In-Kind for Individuals and Families: $266,740

Housing Services: Supported in part by the Local Government

Contact us for more information about gifts in cash and through your estate plans. Email Juliette Garrison (Pasadena Donor Relations Director: Juliette.garrison@usw.salvationarmy.org, or Major Roy Wild (Pasadena Corps Officer): roy.wild@usw.salvationarmy.org.