Summary
Thanks to all Units that participated in the Central Territory Demographic Survey. Because of your responses, we have two maps that reflect the racial/ethnic diversity across the territory, as well as the different languages that are spoken within it. One map includes all the corps in the territory differentiated by color according to each Division; the other one includes all the ARCs. The data reflected on the maps is as of June 1, 2016.
Of the 281 units surveyed (Corps, Harbor Lights and ARCs), 218 units responded, which provided a 78% representation of the whole territory.
Each unit was asked to respond to the survey by providing the percentage of the racial/ethnic representation in the following five areas: Sunday Morning Meeting, Youth Ministries, Women’s Ministries, Men’s Ministries, Social Services, and the languages spoken in their units.
The definition of these follows:
- Sunday Morning Meeting – Worship service celebration held at a Salvation Army facility each Sunday morning.
- Youth Ministries – Religious and character-building programs that can include Sunday school, youth troops, music classes, athletics and sporting events, arts and crafts, camping, and more.
- Women’s Ministries – Encompasses various opportunities for all women where they are valued, encouraged, equipped, and invited to catch the joy through Christian faith and fellowship. The mission is to provide opportunities to win women for Christ, and assist in their spiritual growth, nurturing and awareness of the needs of the family, the community, the nation and the world.
- Men’s Ministries – The mission of the Men’s Ministries is to lead men into a relationship with Christ, and into community with other men who love and serve Him. It focuses on four areas: fellowship, education, worship, service and big events.
- Social Services – Assistance provided in a wide range of services such as food, clothing, rent and utility assistance, Christmas assistance, information and referrals. Availability of these services may vary according to each location.
Also, as a comparison, we used the Area Profile from the Percept Group which provided the racial/ethnic percentages based on the zip code where each unit is located.
NR or “No Response” on the stat sheet of the unit indicates the unit did not answer to that specific question on the survey.
Based on the survey results, we found that twenty seven languages and dialects are spoken in the Central Territory. They include: English, Spanish, Korean, Lao, Russian, Tagalog, French, Karen, Burmese, Polish, Italian, Arabic, Hindi, Congolese, German, Chinese, Akan, Bemba, Somali, Ethiopian, Vietnamese, Hmong, Thai, Lakota, Newar, Ojibwe, and Finnish.
In eighty three units, at least one language or dialect is spoken other than English; and in twenty six units at least two.
Below is a comparison of the ethnic/racial representation in the Sunday Morning Meeting for the whole territory and the United States average population:
Ethnicity/Race United States Average Sunday Morning Meeting
White 61.3% 68.05%
African American/Black .3% 18.01%
Hispanic/Latino 17.8% 10.11%
Native American .7% 1.23%
Asian 5.3% 1.38%
Other 2.6% 1.21%
When you review the maps, you’ll note that each division and ARC, and all of the units associated with it, are color-coded for ease of identification. By clicking the arrow up under your division, it will bring up the entire list of respondents to the survey. By clicking the color-coded dot, it will bring up the results for a particular unit. By clicking on the division, it will provide you with a summary of all respondents for that division. Also, by clicking the home icon on the “Central Territory Racial/Ethnic Map”, it will bring up the total results for the Central Territory. And by clicking the home icon on the “ARC Racial/Ethnic Map”, it will bring up the total results for the ARCs.
It is our hope that the information provided by these maps will help you in your ministry as we fulfill our mission and try to better serve our racially and ethnically diverse communities.
