November is a time to give thanks for family, friends, health, and much more. It's also a time to give thanks to our community heroes, including those at The Salvation Army in East Stroudsburg.

Sue Werkheiser works five days a week, about eight hours a day. It's like a full-time job, but she's not getting paid.

“I do it for the love of the Lord. I’ve been blessed, so it's to give back,” she explained.

For the last 15 years, Sue has volunteered with warehouse and food pantry operations at The Salvation Army in East Stroudsburg. “Always pay it forward. We must help each other. Especially now with what's going on in the world, if we're not here, some of these people wouldn't even have food the next day,” Sue added.

The Salvation Army in East Stroudsburg is celebrating its 125th anniversary. Major John Wheeler says the organization served more than 40,000 people this fiscal year and the need continues to grow, especially during the colder months and around the holidays.

“We have people sleeping in their cars in our parking lot because there are no empty beds available anywhere. We do what we can, but it's stretched, and we can only do so much here. But we do everything we can,” Major Wheeler said.

And that's done through several life-saving programs including emergency food and shelter, plus rental and utility assistance. The Salvation Army relies on volunteers, who worked a total of 12,750 hours this fiscal year, valued at over $450,000 of donated time.

“We're already on the edge of not being able to pay our own bills. We always figure it out, God takes care of us, but we're always on that edge wondering how we're going to make it through the next month or two. If we had to pay for all those people, we just wouldn't make it. Those volunteers are essential to how we function,” Major Wheeler explained.

Josh Loomis is another longtime volunteer who serves breakfast at the soup kitchen every Friday morning before heading to East Stroudsburg University (ESU), where he teaches biology. Like Sue, Josh has a similar reason for giving back.

“I received aid myself when I was a kid. We grew up kind of poor. So, I always knew I wanted to give back if I ever had the chance. Thankfully, I’ve been blessed enough to be able to do that,” he smiled.

The Salvation Army is always in need of donations, whether it’s time or money. This holiday season, there are plenty of ways for you to get involved. Become a bell ringer or donate directly to the iconic Red Kettle campaign, where all money collected stays local to keep essential programs running. Or consider buying a Christmas gift for a child in need through The Salvation Army's angel tree program.

Honoring the heroes who don't wear capes, but instead pack bags and prepare breakfast.