Meet the Team
Neil & Jen Thompson
Cadets, Corps Officers
Neil & Jen are new to this role, but are very familiar with serving within The Salvation Army. Both Neil and Jen come from families who attended a Salvation Army, worked at summer camps as teens, and have worked and volunteered in various positions within The Salvation Army over the years. Now, serving as Corps Officers, they are eager to lead their team in this capacity.
Neil and Jen, along with their four sons, enjoy all that the beautiful Okanagan has to offer and are often found walking or biking on our beautiful trails, spending time at Kal Lake, or playing baseball at the field.
Christine Burge, CPA, CGA
Business Manager
Christine takes care of all our accounting and employment resources needs. Christine calls Vernon home and is often found outdoors exploring the beautiful mountains and lakes.
Randel Erbacker
Community Program Coordinator
Randel leads our Community and Family Services team and is provides leadership for our Food Bank and community programs.
Kathy Davis
Receptionist/Administrative Assistant
Kathy is the first friendly face you see when entering The Salvation Army House of Hope! She is happy to assist anyone coming in our doors with accessing the resources they need and is a fountain of knowledge regarding programming and services offered by The Salvation Army in Vernon.
Tina Phillips
Case Worker
Tina wears her heart on her sleeve and cares deeply about all our clients. She works hard to ensure their needs are met physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Tina is full of joy, compassion, and is driven by her faith and the needs of others.
Laura Richardson
Pathway of Hope Caseworker
Laura is a dedicated and caring member of our team! She works hard, assisting those in need. Laura walks alongside individuals and families providing unique, individualized, goal-oriented supports to help people move from being in a state of crisis to a state of stability. She takes the time to meet one-on-one with each individual, to ensure that physical, spiritual and emotional needs are cared for.
Jillian Penney
Children and Youth Coordinator
Jillian comes to us all the way from Newfoundland, where she studied and graduated with her degree in Social Work. She began youth ministry with The Salvation Army in Vernon in 2016 and fell in love with it immediately. She believes in equipping teens, kids, and their families to explore a personal faith and then live it out authentically.
In 2020, she joined the BC Youth Team as a regional program coordinator. She loves being a part of the divisional team and doing her part to share the mission and vision of the Youth Department to our neighbours here in the interior. She has a passion for encouraging young people, building relationships and creating a safe environment for children and youth to experience a community of belonging.
Dean Sauve
Warehouse Supervisor
Dean is a dedicated and hard-working member of our team. He ensures that food coming into the House of Hope is efficiently sorted and stocked for distribution to our clients. Dean is so appreciative of the food donations that the community so generously provides and for the many volunteers who assist him in receiving, sorting and making hampers.
Our Volunteers
We are grateful to our many volunteers who faithfully work at the front desk and in our warehouse. They provide many hours every week in order to ensure that the needs of our clients are met and that our Food Bank processes continue without interruption. We continually invite interested individuals to join our team of volunteers by clicking on the “Contact Us” button.
Majors Phil & Bev Franco (retired 2013)
Pastoral Care Team
Phil and Bev Franco were ordained and commissioned as Officers in The Salvation Army in 1990. After serving in Ontario, Manitoba, and Victoria BC, they were appointed to Vernon in 2008 as the pastors for the church, and with oversight of The Salvation Army’s ministries until their retirement in 2013. Always passionate for helping others, Phil and Bev remain active in caring for the community in a new role as part of the pastoral care team.
They know from experience that hunger, an acute need, is not the only need. There is the hunger of the heart! Many who enter the doors of the House of Hope are in need of just that – hope!
One of the roles that Majors Phil and Bev take seriously is that of spiritual counselling. The House of Hope is a place where clients are invited and enabled to explore the possibility of a satisfying relationship with their Creator, and deal with life’s spiritual dimension.