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Salvation Army open day shows off service's offering

BBC Rachael and Dylan Nieuwoudt in their Salvation Army uniforms smiling at the camera. The uniforms are black formal jackets with red epaulettes featuring stars in the shoulders and red hexagons featuring the letter S on the lapels. Both are wearing white shirts with the collars buttoned up. He wears a dark tie with a white emblem and she wears a broach. BBC
Rachael and Dylan Nieuwoudt lead the Salvation Army in the Isle of Man

An open day is being held at the new Salvation Army headquarters on the Isle of Man.

The event, running from 10:00 to 14:00 BST at its community centre in Braddan, will be a way of showing the service is “welcome and inviting” to everyone, its local leader has said.

People have been invited to find out more about work of the organisation and see its new church and community centre for the first time.

It marks the first event of its kind since the new headquarters in Braddan was re-opened in May after a refurbishment.

A large white building with a glass door entrance that has a red Salvation Army badge above it. There is paving in front of the building along with disabled parking spaces marked out in yellow paint.
The Braddan facility is the first permanent headquarters since the Douglas citadel closed in 2017

Isle of Man church leader Captain Dylan Nieuwoudt said it was a good way of sharing the organisation’s vision that everyone was welcome.

It features craft stalls, children’s games and activities and a display outlining the Salvation Army's history.

Fellow Captain Rachael Nieuwoudt said the “wonderful" new headquarters was “really massive” for the organisation on the island.

She said: “It’s a place where we can empower and train and teach, and place where we can retreat to after we’ve been out in the community and helping.”

But it is also somewhere people could "hopefully feel at home and feel protected and sheltered and listened to," she added.

Dylan and Rachael Nieuwoudt in uniform holding up a red and blue flag with the words Isle of Man Corps written on it with a yellow octagon in the middle featuring the words Blood & Fire in red writing. Wooden church fixtures including chairs, a lectern and an arrangement of flowers can be seen in the background.
The Douglas branch was recently renamed the Isle of Man Corps

The opening of the new headquarters coincided with the rebranding of the island’s branch from Douglas to Isle of Man.

Reflecting on the change, Mr Nieuwoudt said: “Historically we’ve been based around the island but we have this vision of serving the entire island, and we are seeing this come to fruition, people visiting us from all four corners of the island, and feeling at home here."

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