Salvation Army of Amarillo introduces its new majors to the community

The Salvation Army of Amarillo welcomes its new Majors, Tex and Andrea Ellis, who recently moved to Amarillo with two of their four children and are excited to be living in West Texas.

"We actually love the western part of Texas, so we are very excited to be here in Amarillo and are just looking forward to it," said Tex Ellis.

The major said he and his wife had been adjusting to their new role over the past week. Previously the couple was located in Sherman, where they had served and lived for six years. The couple also served at several other organization locations across the state, including Midland, Wichita Falls, Conroe, McAllen, Port Arthur, as well as four years in Kentucky.

Both majors grew up in the organization, going to church and participating in the Salvation Army Camps, where the couple eventually met. Since then, the couple has been officers or ministers with the nonprofit for 23 years, including six appointments, with Amarillo being the sixth. The couple has a total of four children, with two older sons currently living in the DFW area, and a school-age daughter and son who will be enrolling in the new West Plains High School this upcoming school semester.

"So far we love the city. We are looking forward to working in the community and doing ministry with the Salvation Army and the mission. We are excited to see what God has in store for us here in Amarillo," Ellis said. "We have been in office eight days, including the holiday. I have been able to meet a few community members, and we look forward to meeting even more community leaders and want to let everyone know the Salvation Army is here for the community."

As a part of the Amarillo location of the Salvation Army, the Majors inherited the operation of the Family Thrift Store; the shelter that serves men, women, children and families; the food and clothing pantries; and the church.

"We have our church; we call it a core, located over on Van Buren Street. That is actually the heart of the mission. That has to exist before anything else can come into play, so that is a crucial part in what we do, and there we offer church services, bible studies, youth meetings, summer camps, vacation bible school, several carnivals in the spring and fall. And the church is always open to the community, and something we are very passionate about," Ellis said.

According to Ellis, the couple plans to become adjusted in their new roles and connecting with the community before deciding if they would like to make any adjustments to the current programs.

"For now, with our first couple of weeks, we are trying to get a handle on what we currently have going and plan to improve on that. If it's working well, we will leave it; if we see it needs some improvement, we will make adjustments. Also, if there are new programs or needs that we see in the community, we will work at addressing those. ... We do what we can with what we have. That is our mission, and we will work to meet the needs of the people that we serve," Ellis said.

Wendy Lara, community relations and development coordinator for The Salvation Army of Amarillo, spoke about her initial response to the new majors.

"They are so humble and family oriented and community oriented," Lara said. "I was speaking to Andrea the other day, and she was out there helping unload a truck and she told me, 'You know why I hardly ever wear the white shirt, because I will get it dirty.' They are out there working with us side by side, sorting donations, cleaning the facilities, ringing the bells. They're not going to ask you to do anything that they wouldn't do themselves, and I feel like they are going to do good things in the community."

According to Lara, the Salvation Army plans to host a two-day event for the majors in late August. The first day, the majors will engage in community involvement and meet local partners to build one-on-one relationships, and the second day the community will be invited to a celebration in honor of the majors to welcome them to the Panhandle.

"My wife and I as the officers, we are the pastors for this whole operation and are responsible for multiple counties, and we just promote the mission of the Salvation Army to meet the basic needs of the community in the name of Jesus. And we thank the community for their support, and we solicit their support because that is what keeps us going," Ellis said.

To keep up with the Ellis family in their new roles with The Salvation Army of Amarillo, individuals are encouraged to follow the Amarillo organization on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SalvationArmyAmarillo .

For more information on the Salvation Army or to make a donation, visit them online at https://www.salvationarmytexas.org/amarillo.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Salvation Army presents new majors, the Ellis family, to Amarillo