SEE HOW ADULT REHAB CENTER WORKS

I am writing to express my sincere disappointment over concerns expressed by
Tallevast residents regarding the safety of the Salvation Army's South Bay
Adult Rehabilitation Center in Manatee County. I am also deeply saddened and
troubled that there are folks who have expressed disinterest in touring the ARC
facility in Pinellas County. If they were to visit, they would discover the
truth: The ARC will not compromise the safety of their children.

As a board member of the Salvation Army in Pinellas County for more than 25
years, as well as former principal of Gibbs High School in St. Petersburg, it's
difficult for me to understand why anyone would be against a facility and a
program that has impacted thousands of lives, both locally and throughout the
world, and will serve a major need in Manatee County. As an educator involved
with the school system for 42 years in St. Petersburg, I understand parents'
fears about protecting their children, but I'd like to assure the residents of
Tallevast that the ARC will not be a threat to safety.

Rather, an adult rehabilitation center adds a new hope for those who are in
transition between drug treatment and finding a useful place in the general
population as responsible citizens. When participants for the program arrive at
the ARC for admission, these folks are well on their way to putting their lives
back together again and, free of intoxicating drugs, in good physical health,
willing to commit to a minimum six-month period of rehabilitation and express a
desire to rebuild a lifestyle free of chemical dependency. The individual must
also admit himself or herself voluntarily.

I have been fortunate to spend many years being a part of a ministry motivated
by the love of God, and I have witnessed how it strives to meet human needs in
Christ's name without discrimination through meeting the individuals the ARC
has touched.

Emanuel Stewart

St. Petersburg