COUPLE TRAINING FOR ARMY; CADETS HERE FOR SALVATION ARMY

Salvation Army Cadet Charlene Polsley talked quietly with the mother of a toddler at the Cape Girardeau Army headquarters. The child had no shoes, but his mother was a little embarrassed to ask for help.

Polsley's husband, Randy, said, "I thought maybe Charlene could talk to her mother to mother."

Teamwork, the Polsleys explained later, is a cornerstone in the Salvation Army ministry. The Polsleys are Salvation Army cadets working in Cape Girardeau this holiday season as part of their training to become Army officers.

As part of the two-year education, all cadets spend time working in communities, kind of an on-the-job training.

Salvation Army Capt. Elmer Trapp, who is overseeing the Polsleys training here, said it's nice to have extra hands at work during the holidays.

"They are a big help," Trapp said. "The Salvation Army wants them to be involved, so we are making them a part of our total picture.

"They have been doing various activities," said Trapp. "They are taking Christmas applications. They will be visiting nursing homes and will be in charge of distributing our Christmas baskets."

Randy Polsley said: "This is the busiest time of year for the Army. We have all the special programs. So this gives us a chance to see how it all comes together.

"Next year we may well be in charge of a corps like this somewhere."

The couple arrived here on Nov. 20, a Saturday, and Randy Polsley preached the Sunday morning service. They have been busy since, but that's the way they like it.

Charlene Polsley said: "It's a ministry team. The Salvation Army is such a demanding occupation."

Randy Polsley said: "It's not a typical church and not a typical social-services agency. The Salvation Army looks for a team, and there is plenty to do to keep two people busy."

Randy Polsley is quite familiar with the demands upon Salvation Army officers.

"My father is a minister with Salvation Army in Omaha," he said. "I grew up in Salvation Army as a church and was always involved in the Salvation Army."

But as a young adult he took a job in a big accounting and tax consulting firm in Chicago.

His sister, however, decided to pursue a career with the Salvation Army. That's how he met his wife.

"My sister was in training in Chicago and I would come by to take her to dinner or a movie and Charlene would tag along," he recalled. "Soon it was my sister who was tagging along with Charlene and me."

Charlene Polsley got involved with the Salvation Army through the Girl Guard program, a Girl Scout-type program. "I started going to Salvation Army programs and I really looked up to the officers there. I wanted to be just like them."

So she decided to enter training, where she met Randy.

"We believe we have a calling from God to this ministry," Randy Polsley said. "The Salvation Army meets the spiritual needs and physical needs of people."

The Polsleys will be ordained and commissioned in June. They are anxiously awaiting their assignment. They don't have a clue where they might go, but said every Salvation Army program they have visited would make a nice home, including Cape Girardeau.

"This is a wonderful city," he said. "Everyone has been open and friendly. But we've been so busy it's been hard to see the sights."