Joan Kroc saw a need in East San Diego: Kids there had extremely limited opportunities—in sports, in learning, in life. She worked with The Salvation Army to build a first–class community center, which she herself dedicated. Before her death, she saw what a difference that center made. When she died in 2003, she left a $1.5 billion legacy to The Salvation Army. The vision she spelled out was to create state–of–the–art centers tailor–made for underserved communities. She
knew her heart for serving “the
least of these” matched the Army’s own mission, which she also knew
includes reaching people with the Good News of the Gospel. In accepting the gift to build some 35 more Kroc centers around the nation, Army leaders faced a difficult challenge: Kroc stipulated that her gift be used for bricks–and–mortar and a limited endowment, with the Army and Kroc communities having to fund both some of the building expenses and an operating endowment.
Neither Joan Kroc nor Army leaders could have foreseen the recession that stalled, scaled back, and even scuttled some communities’ plans. Progress has been slowed but it has definitely not stopped. In June 2008, the San Francisco center—in the heart of that city’s Tenderloin district—was the first new one to open. Over the past year, Kroc Centers have begun to open around the nation. These pages provide a glimpse at three unique centers that recently opened in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; Ashland, Ohio; and Atlanta, Ga., and a look ahead at a world–champion tae kwon do master’s hopes for a new center slated to open in Omaha, Neb., in January 2010.
Other Kroc mushrooms that will pop up soon soon are Salem, Ore. (November ’09); Dayton, Ohio (May 2010); Kerrville, Texas (September 2010) Grand Rapids, Mich. (October 2010); Philadelphia, Pa. (Fall 2010); Biloxi, Miss. (Fall 2010); and Boston, Mass. (Spring 2011—see groundbreaking spotlight).
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