Salvation Army Homeless Services Under National Scrutiny

Three weeks ago, The Queens Couriers sister publication The Forum Courier, launched an investigative series into the Salvation Armys poor administration of services at the Carlton House Family Shelter in Ozone Park. In recent days, the paper has learned that Salvation Army shelters across the country have been subjected to similar investigations.
Brian Davis, executive director of the Northeastern Ohio Coalition for the Homeless, told the Forum Courier that a Cleveland-area shelter has been turned over to a new social service provider, following a string of revelations about the Salvation Armys record as the principal contractor.
"The coalition received innumerable complaints from residents about the living conditions at the shelter," said Davis.
Employees at Clevelands 2100 Lakeside Shelter repeatedly abused residents, often stealing their property and, on some occasions, refered to them as "monkeys."
"As advocates for the homeless, we organized town hall meetings and got the local elected officials involved. The Salvation Army was completely uncooperative and refused to address any of the complaints."
Davis explained that residents of Lakeside had written and circulated a petition condemning the deplorable living conditions. "A total of 350 residents signed the petition, and when it was released, those same 350 people were evicted from the shelter."
The coalition helped the ejected residents find emergency housing and aided them in their movement for better sevices.
After several months, the coalition and shelter residents convinced the Cleveland city government to remove the Salvation Army from its administrative role.
After hearing of the coalitions successes at Lakeside, homeless coalition groups in Seattle and Portland have contacted Davis about similar Salvation Army abuses in their respective cities.
Since our initial October 17 article, the Forum Courier has spoken with many residents at Carlton House, all of whom maintain that they have not been contacted by the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) about the condition of their rooms, the food service, sexual misconduct, or the inappropriate behavior of staffers at the shelter.
"We have a lot of confidence in the Salvation Army to do the right thing by the community and by the homeless clients in its care," said DHS spokesman Jim Anderson. "Were working closely with them to separate fact from fiction. Our commitment is to swiftly address the legitimate issues."
City Councilman James Sanders, whose district includes the shelter, said that his office has confirmed many of the allegations about Carlton House.
"I am appalled by the conditions at the shelter and intend on doing everything in my power to bring this injustice to an end."
Sanders had been at the forefront of the opposition to Carlton Houses opening in a recently bankrupt Best Western Hotel back in July. Hotel union workers had warned him of significant problems with the building.
"The lives of children are at risk and we must take immediate steps to remedy the situation," he said.
Queens Borough President Helen Marshall spoke out vehemently against the operation of the shelter. "This is a crime. This is no way to treat mothers and their children." Marshall was also a vocal opponent of the shelters opening, and she cites its sheer size, over 330 families, as being the main problem.
"Obviously too many people have been crammed onto this space to be cared for properly," she said. "Isnt it clear enough that these people are not being taken care of the way they should be?"
"There have been over 150 EMS calls to the shelter since its early July opening. All of those calls have been related to asthma and/or food poisoning."
The BP went on to say that she was "shocked and outraged" at the amount of city money over $70 million being paid to the Salvation Army for the operation of the shelter, with a poor level of care being given in return.
"These are people who are struggling," said Marshall.
"They are, for the most part, women and children who need care and guidance. Instead they are being fed garbage and treated horribly. We must address this problem immediately before we have a tragedy."
Further investigation this week by the Forum Courier has uncovered additional suspect activity. A copy of the shelters budget details a security contract totaling $849,885 yet the Salvation Army has its own security company. The organizations director of family and adult services, Alfred Peck, admitted that there have been shortages on security shifts, with paychecks for security personnel often being held back.
A number of security personnel have been fired for engaging in sexual acts with clients.
An additional shelter budget item for General Liability Insurance is described as a bi-annual bill totaling $22,675. But, again, the Salvation Army is self-insured.
The Forum Courier has also learned that the Salvation Armys Alfred Peck is the father of Ted Peck, a high-raking employee at Whitsons Food, the company that has the contract for the food service at the Carlton House.