Service from the heart

Elizabeth Gross was wearing a collared white shirt, dark blue pants and jacket with the white “S” emblazoned on a red patch when she approached the fish taco stand on the Westside.

An older couple, eyeing her crisp, clean appearance, asked, “What’s your uniform?”

“Salvation Army,” Gross responded.

The man beamed. His eyes widened. A smile crossed his face.

“I love the Salvation Army,” he said. “When I was 5 years old, my dad was a disabled vet and my house caught on fire. I had to run out and I just had the clothes on my back.”

Salvation Army, he went on, helped the family with food, clothing and shelter.

It’s that kind of encounter that leads Lt. Gross to love being Salvation Army’s Lihue Corps officer and Kauai County coordinator. It’s why she’s delighted when people ask about her uniform.

“My service comes from the heart of who I am,” she said.

And that gives her the opportunity to share why she’s on Kauai and what she hopes to do in her new role here with the faith-based, nonprofit program.

“I hope that while I’m here, I can just make people more aware of the impact Salvation Army has on the community and what we do,” Gross said.

Salvation Army does more than operate a thrift store and bring out those famous red kettles come Christmas time. It offers a soup kitchen, emergency disaster services, camp opportunities, and educational and spiritual programs for teens and adults.

“We’ll serve anyone,” Gross said.

And they welcome volunteers to join them in that service. Money that is raised here, stays here, she said.

“The sky is the limit when we have people to come around and make something happen,” she said.

Gross replaces Maj. Mario Reyes, who transferred to another location. Her parents, Ed and Anna Gross, are pastors, so she grew up in a home whose mission was to meet the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of their community.

When she was 16, she worked with the homeless in San Francisco. She witnessed the impact that simple acts of generosity and caring can have on the lives of others.

“I decided that’s what I wanted to do with my life,” she said.

Gross earned a bachelor’s degree in cross-cultural studies from Simpson University in Redding, California. She moved to Oahu after college and worked five years with Salvation Army while it prepared to open a community Kroc Center.

It was during those five years she liked what she learned more about Salvation Army and decided to make a lifelong commitment to the Christian organization. She recently completed a two-year training program to become an officer and was ordained as a pastor.

“It became family,” she said. “It became home.”

She was delighted when she was assigned to Kauai and arrived in July. Since, she’s been meeting people, attending community events and sharing stories of Salvation Army’s many ministries. Also on her list is recruiting volunteers to be holiday bell ringers.

“I’m trying to expand our niche in the community, seeing what other needs we can build on and meet,” Gross said. “Just raising awareness we’re here. We want the Salvation Army to be a place of fellowship and hope and a home for people.”

Information: 245-2571 or elizabeth.gross@usw.salvationarmy.org.

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Bill Buley, editor-in-chief, can be reached at 245-0457 or bbuley@thegardenisland.com.