Doing the Most Good

I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart. (Psalm 40:8)

For over 10 years, I have had the privilege of serving on The Salvation Army (TSA) Columbus Area Services’ advisory board. Today, I’d like to use this space to share with you some of the reasons I’ve come to love this organization and its people.

1. TSA’s mission statement doesn’t just hang on their building’s walls, it is plastered on their people’s hearts; it drives everything they do. Its mission is "to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.”
2. Eighty-five cents out of every  dollar contributed to TSA goes to meet human needs. Speaking at our annual fund raiser, retired astronaut and U.S. senator John Glenn recalled that his father used to say, “The Salvation Army gets more out of a dollar than anyone else.” His dad was right.
3. Management guru Peter Drucker declared TSA to be “the most effective organization in the U.S.” I can tell you first-hand that these folks are focused on—and exceptional at—what they do.
4. The Salvation Army is there 24/7, year-around. Some organizations are appropriately designed to engage the community during an emergency and then move on. TSA is designed to stay; they are always there to support and serve the hurting. 
5. Here are some of TSA’s services: food pantries, housing, after-school tutoring, anti-human trafficking case management, emergency disaster relief, and sharing the good news of Jesus Christ. People often say to me, “I never knew The Salvation Army did so much.”
6. Rather than foster a permanent dependency, TSA moves people down a path to independence, believing each person has innate strengths and capabilities that can be mobilized to facilitate change in their lives.
7. “Doing the Most Good” is TSA’s brand promise; in my view, it is a promise kept.

When you see The Salvation Army’s red kettles and hear their bells ringing a few months from now, smile and know there is still goodness in the world and that people still care. Hope lives on.