by Liz Daube
Staff Writer
Majs. Jim and Linda Arrowood may be new to their Jacksonville posts, but they’ve been working with the Salvation Army all their lives.
Jim’s parents were Salvation Army commanders and Linda’s family volunteered with the church side of the nonprofit when she was a child. Now, Jim and Linda have been commissioned into the Salvation Army for 23 years and married for 31 years. The couple relocated from Baltimore in July to replace Majs. James and Karol Seiler as the area commanders of the Northeast Florida Salvation Army.
“We both went in together,” said Jim, recalling how he quit a well-paying job more than two decades ago to join the Salvation Army with his wife. “This is a joint effort.”
The nonprofit assigns married couple officers to different posts every few years as positions are left vacant from retirement or other causes. As a result, the Arrowoods have lived all over the southern United States, from Texas to Florida.
“Everywhere we live we’re like the tourists.You get to appreciate the local areas,” said Jim. “Every city has its quirkiness. I haven’t figured out what Jacksonville’s quirkiness is yet.”
The couple misses some of the Baltimore quirks and culture, but they said they’re enjoying the First Coast so far.
“Baltimore itself is steeped in history ... and people call it ‘A Little New York,’” said Jim, describing the ethnic enclaves throughout the city. “You could have great crabs one day and some great lasagna the next day.”
On the other hand, the Arrowoods agreed that Jacksonville has a certain Southern charm that Baltimore lacks.
“Being back in the deep south is just wonderful.The Salvation Army is very established and well-respected in the community here,” said Jim. “Everyone has made us feel very welcomed. It’s a very friendly community.”
The Arrowoods have two grown daughters, one in Colorado and another in Tampa. Linda said the frequent moves weren’t always easy on the girls when they were growing up, but “it’s made our girls very independent.”
Both daughters work for nonprofits, and the youngest is involved with the Salvation Army in Tampa.
“It (nonprofit work) is kind of in their blood,” said Linda.
“They’ve seen people at the best and at their worst,” Jim added, recalling how his daughters volunteered when they were young. He mentioned one incident with his oldest daughter: “We couldn’t find her one afternoon. What she was doing was sneaking coffee out to the homeless.”
The Arrowoods said their various assignments have given them special experience with disasters, youth programs and administration. According to Jim, the Arrowood family has been both victim and volunteer in disaster situations.
He said that he and Linda have helped out during other hard times. They went to Texas last year to assist the thousands of displaced victims from Hurricane Katrina. Because of Baltimore’s close proximity to Washington, D.C., the couple said the Sept. 11 attacks had a significant impact on the community.
“We really learned how to reach out to the community and, even in difficult times, the community really reached out to us,” said Jim. “Although you have these horrible disasters, we needed to be reminded that there are still people in our community facing disasters in their own lives.”
Jim said the Jacksonville area Salvation Army has unique programs because each location is tailored to fit the community’s needs. The Arrowoods said their goal will be developing Jacksonville’s current variety of programs to help the needy “spiritually, physically and emotionally.”
“People think ‘They’re the ones out there ringing bells at Christmas time,’” said Jim. “But the Salvation Army is a 365-day operation.”