Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Joseph Cyr
NEW ENVOYS — Damon and Phyllis Hayward are the new leaders of the Salvation Army in Houlton and Presque Isle. The couple hopes to expand the Salvation Army’s spiritual presence in the communities it serve.
By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
HOULTON — The Salvation Army has a new couple serving as a beacon of hope and inspiration.
Damon and Phyllis Hayward recently took over as the new envoys for the Army. They replace Capt. Steve and Irma Pearl, who served as the leaders of the Houlton Salvation Army for seven years before being transferred to Coshocton, Ohio.
Damon hails from Indianapolis, while Phyllis is from Harlan, Ky. So how did the Haywards find their way to Aroostook County?
Prior to coming to the Shiretown, the Haywards ran the Nazarene Church in Bangor for two and a half years. Prior to that, they were in Kansas. In April, 2014, the Haywards will celebrate their 25th anniversary.
“The Nazarene Church, theologically and mission-wise, is very similar to the Salvation Army,” Damon said. “The Army is much more involved in social services. We have been involved with the Salvation Army for many years.”
Damon served as director of social services in the Grant County area of Indiana for a number of years and worked in the inner city mission in Marion, Ind.
“There was a lot of cooperative work with the Salvation Army, so I have always had a lot of contact with them,” Damon said.
“I was not employed with the Salvation Army at any time, but I was always volunteering with them,” Phyllis added.
Renovations are in the works for the Court Street facility that serves as both a food distribution center and place of worship. Also, work began Tuesday (yesterday) on a new metal roof for the building.
“The core has had a lot of heavy use and we really want to bring the building back and freshen it up,” Damon said.
Bolstering the ministerial side of the Salvation Army is one of the goals for the Haywards. As envoys, the couple is in charge of the ministry, social services, finances and all other aspects of the Army. They also manage the thrift stores in Houlton and Presque Isle.
“Church services are one of the major things we want to get back to,” Phyllis said. “The goal is to get people saved. We’re excited by the challenge.”
“We also want to have a strong emphasis on youth,” Damon added. “We don’t want to launch brand new things or stay with just what has been done. We want to evaluate all of the programs. We really want to be more attentive to the needs of the community.”
Damon said one of his goals is to build a strong rapport with the community.
“As the assigned envoy here, I would love to see us build that rapport, because that will open the door for a lot of opportunities,” he said. “Not just for us, but for future years ahead. I like to think beyond just my lifetime. What can I do to leave an impression years down the road?”
Damon said he also hopes to increase the Salvation Army’s presence in Presque Isle, particularly on the evangelism side
For many, the Salvation Army is the group that provides gifts at Christmas or maybe helps out in times of need, like a fire or other tragedy. And while those elements are important, they are not the only role it plays.
“The Salvation Army is sometimes looked upon as solely a social service organization, because they see the kettles at Christmas,” he said. “Once the kettles are gone, they don’t even know what the Army does. We are really so much more. People know very little about what the Army does with its funds.”
Helping provide food for the hungry or heating assistance in the winter are other areas that the Army helps out. The Haywards said the generosity from area businesses, in just their short time in Houlton, has been overwhelming.
One local grocery store, for the month of August, donated more than $4,000 in food items to the pantry. But even with that generous donation, the supplies are woefully slim. In the month of August, the Houlton branch provided food assistance to 340 people.
The Haywards said they hope to remain in Aroostook County for a long time. With the Salvation Army, terms are typically no less than one year, but that is not to say that the Haywards will be packing up a year from now.
“You serve with the Salvation Army until they decide to relocate you,” Phyllis said. “No one knows the answer. It might be a year. It might be 10 years, you just never know.”
Houlton’s Salvation Army headquarters is located on 12 Court St. and open Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Social Service hours are Monday-Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Children’s Sunday School is held at 9:45 a.m. on Sundays and regular worship services is at 11 a.m. Sundays. For more information on the Salvation Army, call 532-2322.
