2021 Territorial Man and Ministry of the Year

By: Major Mark Satterlee

Our 2021 Southern Territorial Man of the Year is Mr. Edwin Quintanilla from the Marietta, Georgia corps. The corps officer reports that Edwin is an active soldier and volunteer year-round. He teaches a Spanish speaking Sunday school class and is a leader of the corps Men's Ministry. 

Lt. Juan Reyes, corps officer, reports that Edwin's volunteerism includes cooking and working on the canteen, visitation to the homes of corps members and local hospital, and cooking breakfast for adults and children that attend the corps on Sundays. He assisted with his corps Angel Tree and was a bellringer. Edwin helps with lawn work and landscaping at the corps and at the homes of older soldiers. The corps officer estimates that, when added together, Edwin has saved or raised nearly $40,000 for the corps in 2021. 

Since the corps has no janitor he acts in that role at the corps and regularly cleans the busses. He attends the corps regularly along with his wife and son, wears his uniform regularly, He coaches youth sports and picks up people for church on Sunday as a driver. 

Among the other candidates for Man of the Year were the divisional awardees; Earl Merryman from Fayetteville, Arkansas, Eddie Robertson from Henderson, North Carolina, Lyle Sorenson from Biloxi, Mississippi and Joey Thompson from Tyler, Texas. 

The Men's Ministry of the Year for 2021 is awarded to the Gwinnett County, (Lawrenceville) Georgia Corps. With well over 40 men involved each Sunday in the corps ministry, the men of Gwinnett County have regular monthly prayer breakfasts, planned, supplied, prepared and led by the men. The men are active in the adult band and songsters as well as teaching the youth band programs. They wear their uniforms each Sunday, attend with their families and tithe consistently. 

They regularly take two full days to ring bells and last year raised over $2,500 for the corps Christmas programs. They assisted with the Christmas distribution program. They are active in the Sunday Holiness meetings, leading, praying, singing and preaching as requested by the corps officers. 

The men are active in and lead small groups. They assisted the corps with their local minor league baseball team fundraiser. They assist the Women's Ministries with their family nights during the summer. The men raised funds for the Territorial Men's Project by selling root beer floats to purchase bees and beehives for Salvationists in Angola, Africa. 

The Major Paul Ryerson, the corps officer, says of the men, "There's hardly anything I ask of these guys that they are not willing to do." 

Men's Ministries from across the territory that were candidates for ministry of the year include Elizabeth City, North Carolina, Decatur, Alabama and Arlington, Texas. 

May God bless these men and men's ministries from across the Southern Territory!