ALTON - Advisory Council President, Kevin Botterbush, is pleased to announce the arrival of Lts. Stephen and Lilyanna Reinier as new Alton Corps Officers. The Reinier’s and their family of 4 arrived in Alton on Wednesday, June 2
8 and officially began their appointment with the Alton Corps.
President Botterbush said, “The Alton Corps was served very well for five years by Captain’s Bryan & Teri Ellison and we wish them well as they begin their new appointment in Duluth, MN.” Botterbush continued, “The Reinier family comes to Alton from Muscatine, Iowa, and are recent graduates of The Salvation Army College for Officer Training located in Chicago.”
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Prior to their decision to become Salvation Army Officers, Lt. Stephen spent 15 years working as a manager at Walmart and Lt. Lilyanna began her working career as a hairdresser and then worked for five years as a preschool teacher before receiving the call to ministry. Lt. Stephen said: “Our interest in the work of the Salvation Army began in 2012 as we started volunteering with our home Corps in the areas of youth programming, emergency disaster services, and of course, Christmas Kettles.” He continued, “It didn’t take the Lord long to start working on our hearts and we made the decision as a family to become Officers and do this work full-time.” Lt. Lilyanna echoed Stephen’s remarks, “Serving those less fortunate than ourselves and providing hope was a call on our lives that we just couldn’t ignore.”
In their “free time”, though the new lieutenants know there probably won’t be much of that until after the Christmas holiday season, Lt. Lily and her daughters enjoy scrapbooking and bible journaling with the Inspire Bible. Lt. Stephen likes the outdoors and enjoys a good day of fishing or spending time honing his marksmanship skills at the shooting range.
Lt. Stephen shared, “We have already taken some drives up the Great River Road and have found our way to Eckert’s Orchard for fresh peaches.” He continued, “My family and I are blessed to become part of this community, and look forward to meeting and working with anyone who is interested in building new traditions and making the community better for us all.” “We have certainly been made to feel right at home”, concluded the Lieutenant.
The Salvation Army – Alton Corps is planning a “Meet-n-Greet” reception for the Reinier family at the Alton Corps; 525 Alby Street on Tuesday, September 5 from 5-7:00 p.m. Light refreshments will be provided and the Advisory Council looks forward to introducing the Reinier’s to area residents and community leaders. The Salvation Army is an evangelical part of the Universal Christian church and was established in London in 1865.
The Alton Corps has been serving the Greater Alton area for 129 years. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through a broad array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, shelter for the homeless, relief for disaster victims, and assistance for the disabled that are funded with .82 of every dollar contributed to the agency.
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