FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Salvation Army - Portland Metro
8495 SE Monterey Ave.
Happy Valley, OR  97086

Major Don Gilger
Portland Metro Coordinator
719.201.3215

Teresa Engel
Director of Communications & Marketing
503.794.3283

Veterans Cruise-In To Beaverton With Antique Cars

(Beaverton, Oregon) May 29, 2012 - Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines please, and make your way to the annual classic car Cruise-In on June 16th from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the Valley Catholic High School, located at 4275 SW 148th Ave. Beaverton, Oregon. Funds raised from the event will go to support The Salvation Army Veterans and Family Center on Farmington Road, who house and serve veterans and their families. This family friendly event will be the perfect Father's Day Weekend event. Antique cars, fire trucks, police cars, motorcycles and military vehicles will be some of the featured automobiles. Royalty in attendance will be Miss Portland 2012, Ms. Kaitlin Endres, and Miss Three Rivers 2012, Ms. Nichole Mead; they will be presenting the awards for trophy winners for automobiles entered into the Cruise-In event. There will be fun and food for all at the event. Because this is the first year for the Veterans Cruise-In event, there will be no cost associated with registering your car into the competition. Registration of vehicles will be available on the day of the event.  There are opportunities for local businesses to sponsor the event too. Please call the Veterans and Family Center for more information, at 503.731.3951.

The Veterans and Family Center recently moved from a Portland downtown location to Beaverton, a move that has proven to be a great fit for veterans and the community too. The veterans are now able to be a part of a community and the center hopes that the community will continue to embrace the veterans.

"We look forward to having the community come out to the event and find out what The Salvation Army is doing to serve veterans," says Rick Stoller, program director of Veterans Center. The Veterans and Family Center serves veterans, men and women from all branches of the service, but also serves the spouse and children of the veteran. "Many times a veteran just will not leave their family on the street or in a van and come into a program," says Rick Stoller. "This is why we need to serve the wife and sometimes the husband of the veteran and the children too."

Even though the program receives funding from the Veterans Administration to help support the homeless veteran, the program receives no funding from the VA for the family members served. This places a strain on the Veterans Center budget. But The Salvation Army considers it a privilege to serve veterans and their family members and is asking the community to support the Veterans and Family Center through this fundraising effort.

There are as many different stories of why a veteran may need to access services such as the Veterans and Family Center. Sometimes it is a drug and alcohol problem, a divorce or sometimes it is a financial difficulty that creates a problem, making it a challenge to get back on their feet, or sometimes it is all of the above.

Bill T. who served in the Marines said, "Life was great, I was married and I had a good job, but then my wife died, then I had a heart attack leaving me disabled, unemployable, and lonely. I had no family in the area, so I found myself sleeping in my car. Being at the end of my rope I called the Suicide line and was taken to the hospital and referred to The Salvation Army's Veterans and Family Center. The program rules say you have to remain clean and sober or leave the program. I am so grateful to be given the chance to heal and remain sober. Thank God The Salvation Army was there for me, I even have a job now."

Joyce W.  who served in the Army said, "I had my spleen removed while in the Army and I had a compromised immune system as a result. Last year I was working at a daycare and became sick. By mutual consent I was let go from my job. Due to previous financial mismanagement, I had little money to work with, so I moved in with friends, but you know that sure didn't work out. Then I found The Salvation Army's Veterans and Family Center had room for me. I am so grateful that The Salvation Army is a standup organization for veterans. The Veterans Center has helped me to heal from my Vietnam era loss and pain."

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About The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in London in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for 130 years in the United States. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. 82 cents of every dollar The Salvation Army spends is used to support those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. The Salvation Army works in 124 countries worldwide.  For more information, or to make a donation, visit us online at www.salvationarmyportland.org. People wishing to make monetary donations can do so by calling 503.238.GIVE (4483) or 503.731.3951 or by mail, The Salvation Army Veterans and Family Center, 14825 SW Farmington Road, Beaverton, OR97007. Be sure to designate your gift to Cruise-In or (VFC) Veterans and Family Center.