Volunteer Spotlight: Gail Burneyko

This month's Volunteer Spotlight is on Gail Burneyko! Gail has been a dedicated Salvation Army volunteer since Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey. Right after the storm, Gail took a friend to a Salvation Army canteen in Union Beach for a cup of coffee. The rest is history! Gail jumped right in, helping our Emergency Disaster Services team serve meals over the next week.

“Having taught in Union Beach, I had become connected to so many students and their families,” said Gail. “Volunteering with The Salvation Army gave me the opportunity to give back to the people who had given me so much over the course of my career.”

Gail continued to volunteer as a Client Assistant at our Hazlet Emergency Assitance Center from February 2013 until June 2013. More recently, she has helped with food set-up and childcare, while also preparing to Chair this year’s Christmas Committee in Monmouth County. Gail will secure locations for Angel Trees and help coordinate the collection and distribution of gifts.

“The Salvation Army’s Christmas kettles and bell ringing have so much more meaning for me now,” said Gail. “I have seen first-hand amazing amount of assistance the Army provides to those in need in our local communities.”

Interested in volunteering with The Salvation Army? Apply today!

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An Act of God

An 'Act of God' is described as an extraordinary interruption that is beyond human control and can't be prevented! Years ago, this term would lead a person to think directly of insurance claims as the image of a neighbor's tree which was once upright now rest on the roof of what used to be a minivan. In more recent years, the mind might rush to scenes of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina or the faces of Indonesian children after the devastation of a tsunami.

In any case, we have been led to believe that an 'Act of God' is some sort of natural anomaly that leaves behind a trail of debris and tears. There can't be many things further from the truth!

Thousands of years ago, as the sequel to the fall of man, an 'Act of God' occurred. A Champion was born to an unaware world to a carpenter and his young wife. As the third installment to this spectacle, another 'Act of God' happened. About 33 years later, that same Champion reached out to the west, He grabbed hold of the east and announced His victory over that great adversary, "It is finished."

John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

That may have been the greatest 'Act of God' of them all, but the truth is that it wasn't the last one. The truth is that they happen every day! Not every 'Act of God' has a star hovering over it. Not every 'Act of God' has a crowd gathered and ready to bear witness to it.

An 'Act of God' is when a police officer buys a pair of shoes for a homeless man and helps him put them on without knowing cameras are watching. An 'Act of God' is a teacher who shields her students from an attacker. An 'Act of God' isn't an unstoppable wildfire or an unimaginable storm. It's unstoppable love and unimaginable grace. An 'Act of God' is every image of love, compassion and justice we project in this world.

Written by Lt. Darell Houseton
Newark Ironbound 

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Hurricane Sandy: The Salvation Army Serving New Jersey

The Salvation Army New Jersey is dedicated to the long-term needs of Hurricane Sandy survivors. For more information, visit http://www.salvationarmynj.org

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