You want to help the people in Myanmar and China? Well, get the biggest bang for your buck by giving to The Salvation Army. They’ve been working in both countries–building schools, bringing medical help, and caring for souls for years. Their people on the ground are natives of their respective countries, so there’s no problem getting in. They know the needs of the people. They know the lay of the land. And they know how to squeeze a nickel to make it do a dime’s job.

One thing they don’t do much is advertise, so maybe that’s why this comes as news. Funny people these Salvationists; they’d rather help somebody than strut and puff about it.

How do I know? I grew up with the Army ethic. My book, On We March: A memoir of growing in in The Salvation Army, comes out later this year. It’s upbeat and funny because, although the evidence was all around us, we had no idea we had it hard. Optimism beats an ace up the sleeve.

Go to http://www.SalvationArmy.org and donate the big bucks. Now.