June 2021 Newsletter
Dear Friends of The Salvation Army,
My name is Sean O’Brien. I am a Captain with The Salvation Army of Torrance. My wife Harryette and I have the pleasure of serving the communities of Torrance, Lomita, Carson, Wilmington, Harbor City, and Palos Verdes through our work with The Salvation Army. Our community services are varied and much needed. Services include food boxes, sanitary supplies, clothing, music lessons, and much more. We recently had an opportunity to serve these communities in a new and opportune way: COVID-19 vaccinations.
COVID-19 has affected financially vulnerable populations at a much higher rate than more financially secure communities. At the end of November, Los Angeles County reported that in communities where more than 20% of residents lived below the poverty line, they contracted COVID-19 at more than twice the rate of more affluent communities. Generally, these lower income communities have less access to medical care, less access to COVID-19 testing, and residents who work in jobs that cannot be done remotely, like the service industry. Therefore, it is especially important for those living below the poverty line to have access to the COVID-19 vaccine.
The wonderful and resourceful staff at our Stillman Sawyer Family Service Center partnered with Los Angeles County for two COVID-19 vaccination events to help our vulnerable neighbors receive the vaccine. These events were held at our Stillman Sawyer Family Service center on April 13 and May 11, and I am pleased to share that we administered 28 vaccines. These vaccines were given to our social services clients, our neighbors experiencing homelessness, staff, and residents in our drug and alcohol rehabilitation program. Salvation Army staff have built relationships and trust with these people, which helped in signing them up to receive the vaccine.
We hope and pray that we are nearing the end of this pandemic. But, no matter what, we will continue to serve and help anyone in need without discrimination. Thank you for your continued interest and support of the important work being done at The Salvation Army of Torrance.
God Bless,
Sean O’Brien, Captain
The Salvation Army of Torrance
Serving Torrance, Lomita, Carson, Wilmington, Harbor City, and Palos Verdes