The Salvation Army Orlando Area Command Collaborates with Sheltersuit Foundation
The Salvation Army Orlando Area Command and Sheltersuit USA Foundation are proud to announce a collaborative initiative to provide “The Shelterbag” to individuals experiencing homelessness in Central Florida. This portable sheltered bed is lightweight, waterproof, and comes fully equipped with a built-in mattress and pillow. Each Shelterbag folds up for easy transport, has a compartment where personal items can be stored for safekeeping, and comes with an upright hood feature allowing for more space and shelter from the elements.
With a longstanding vision to find innovative ways to expand emergency shelter solutions provided by The Salvation Army, Captain Ken Chapman and his team will witness this component of their vision in action. With the unhoused population of Orlando expanding in untraditional ways, these backpack-mobile shelters will strike a historic impact in the community and assure the unsheltered of Orlando have additional support alongside The Salvation Army’s existing shelters. “Our community is ever-changing, and we remain ready to meet its needs as changes arise,” said Captain Ken Chapman, Area Commander, The Salvation Army Orlando Area Command. “Being equipped with mobile shelterbags enables us to literally save lives. Although most unhoused individuals will accept shelter when invited in, some will not. For those unwilling to seek shelter, these shelterbags will make a difference between life and death,” he continued.
The Salvation Army Orlando Area Command has distributed the shelterbags during this year’s recent cold fronts and will continue to do so. Made possible by the generous contributions of a private anonymous donor, the donation was made to Sheltersuit to cover the cost of all 750 units. Captain Ken Chapman and Albertine Bresters, Managing Director of Sheltersuit USA Foundation, led the effort collaborating to acquire the Shelterbags from their South Africa branch and delivering to their end destination in Orlando.
“We are very excited about our project with The Salvation Army Orlando Area Command and to expand our reach to Orlando, Florida,” said Alberstine Bresters, Managing Director of Sheltersuit USA Foundation. We typically work together with local organizations to distribute our products, as they know the people in need best and The Salvation Army has already proven to be a very valuable partner to us. It’s wonderful to see local organizations, anonymous donors, and large corporations uniting – in the end it’s all about people helping people,” she continued.
With sporadic cold temperatures and inclement weather throughout Central Florida, the goal of this initiative is to provide unhoused community members with this valuable lifesaving tool.