The Do Gooders Podcast

For more than 30 years, Maria Rodriguez has been the heart of The Salvation Army Los Angeles Day Care Center—supporting children and families in LA's fashion, produce and flower districts. In this episode, Christin Thieme talks with Maria about how she went from high school volunteer to director, why safe, affordable childcare matters more than ever, and how a parent committee has transformed the...

Discover how the Big Five personality traits shape the way you see the world—and your relationships.  Dr. Jack Anderson joins Christin Thieme to share practical ways to bridge differences, build trust and bring out the best in others. EPISODE SHOWNOTES: Read more. BE AFFIRMED. Get the Good Words email series. JOIN THE HOPEFULS. Get inside the group. WHAT'S YOUR CAUSE? Take our quiz. BE INSPIRED. F...

Today, we're covering one of America's most pressing challenges: homelessness. But this isn't an episode drowning you in statistics. Instead, we're going to explore real solutions happening right now across the western United States—ways The Salvation Army is helping to truly change lives, one person at a time. Of course, the numbers are sobering. According to the Department of Housing and Urban D...

Lately, here on this show, we're exploring what happens when hope moves from feeling to doing, from possibility to practice. And today, we're continuing our journey inside one of The Salvation Army's recent transformations: Hope Markets. As we covered in our recent "Hope in Action" issue of the magazine , these aren't your typical food pantries. In Hope Markets across the Northwest, people don't r...

Today, we're heading to Long Beach, California, to talk to someone with a unique perspective on youth programming. Captain Jared Arnold runs The Salvation Army Red Shield Community Center, and he recently caught my attention when he said, "Summer is our Christmas." Now, when most of us think about summer, we might think about vacations, beach days or maybe just trying to keep the kids entertained....

Want to hear some encouraging news that's emerging from communities across America? After years of declining volunteer participation—a trend that accelerated during the pandemic—researchers are documenting what they're calling a "volunteer rebound." The numbers are striking. Nearly 30 percent of Americans formally volunteered from 2022 to 2023, contributing almost 5 billion hours of service. That'...

It won't come as a surprise to you that hundreds of thousands of veterans across America are affected by trauma—some from their time in military service, though not all—and yet, their needs remain deeply misunderstood by many of us who haven't served. Not all veterans experience post-traumatic stress disorder, and yet many do—in fact, some 29 percent of veterans who served in Iraq experience it at...

We're exploring not just what hope is, but how it's built, sustained and passed from person to person, community to community. Today, I'm welcoming two leaders whose lives embody this multi-generational understanding of hope: Commissioners Doug and Colleen Riley, territorial leaders of The Salvation Army in the western U.S. The pair met while working at a summer camp, married and in 1995 were comm...

We're exploring what it means to put Hope in Action. And today, I'm excited to welcome a guest who has dedicated his career to understanding hope not just as a feeling, but as a measurable, teachable strength that transforms lives and communities. Dr. Chan Hellman is recognized as one of the world's leading hope scholars, with more than 25 years of research, training and teaching experience. His g...

Hope isn't something that happens to you. It's something you create. It's what happens when possibility meets action. Today we're beginning a journey—one that will explore not just what hope is, but how we build it, nurture it and put it into action. Here's the key: Hope isn't just something lucky people have. It's something all of us can build. And the best part is "hope in action" isn't about do...

In part four of our series, Walking With Jesus: A Journey to the Cross with Major Dr. Terry Masango, we stand before the empty tomb—the defining moment that separates Christianity from every other faith tradition in the world. The resurrection isn't just an epilogue to the crucifixion—it's the validation of everything Jesus taught and claimed. It's the proof that death has been defeated, that sin...

In part three of our series, Walking With Jesus: A Journey to the Cross with Major Dr. Terry Masango, we explore three simple words: "Jesus, remember me."  Spoken by a dying criminal, these words contain within them the essence of our faith journey. As we near Holy Week, Major Masango invites us to consider which of the two thieves we identify with—the one who demanded physical salvation or the on...

In part two of our series, Walking With Jesus: A Journey to the Cross with Major Dr. Terry Masango, we turn to one of Jesus' most profound and challenging parables: The Good Samaritan. This story isn't just about helping others—it completely redefines what it means to be a neighbor and challenges our assumptions about who deserves our love and compassion. In our world, we're often divided by diffe...

Welcome to a new series—Walking With Jesus: A Journey to the Cross. Over the next four weeks, we'll be guided by Major Dr. Terry Masango through a thoughtful exploration of Scripture and its meaning in our everyday lives. In this series, he invites us to walk alongside those who encountered Jesus on his journey to the cross—from the lost sheep being carried home on the shepherd's shoulders, to the...

Today, we're closing our Warm Hearts, Warm Homes series with perhaps the most critical need of all: shelter. Recent government data shows homelessness has soared to the highest level on record, with more than 770,000 people experiencing homelessness in the United States—an 18 percent increase over last year. Behind these sobering statistics are real people seeking safety, warmth and a path forward...

We're back again today with our Warm Hearts, Warm Homes series, and this time, exploring how food assistance helps create warm, stable homes for our neighbors in need. Food insecurity is a big problem in the United States, as 47 million people—including 14 million children—do not have enough to eat and don't know where their next meal will come from. Beyond that figure, many more people—estimated...

Continuing our Warm Hearts, Warm Homes series, today we're tackling a challenge that affects countless families during these coldest weeks of the year—keeping the heat on. For many of our neighbors, the choice between staying warm and affording other essentials is a harsh reality. Did you know roughly 11 percent of Americans live in poverty, which is about 36.8 million people, according to the Cen...

On this show, we like to share stories of everyday people turning hope into action in small, real-life ways right where they are—people like Suzanne Pickering. As a representative of Banner Health, Suzanne started a winter coat and blanket drive in partnership with The Salvation Army in Tucson, Arizona. She knows firsthand what it is like to need a little help—and after seeing people without a war...

In disasters, we often see something remarkable: how communities come together, how neighbors help neighbors, and how hope persists even in the darkest moments. And notably, it's up to each of us and the little choices we make to keep that spirit of community alive, not just in times of crisis, but every day. Today, I want to share a few stories that capture this perfectly. When we talk about warm...

One of the most powerful tools available to us is our own mindfulness. Dr. Jon Kole is the Medical Director and Senior Director of Psychiatry at Headspace, which calls itself "the mental health app for every moment." From guided meditations to one-on-one coaching, the Headspace team of clinical experts and trained coaches work to offer science-backed care. He's joining us today to explore how mind...

What would you take if you had to evacuate your home?  Are you prepared? A study by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) found less than half of American households had discussed or developed an emergency plan. After hearing the stories of many families I know having to evacuate with little to no warning, I decided it was time to finally get serious and actually make a plan for our famil...

In our recent episodes, we've explored what it means to lose home—from the immediate chaos of evacuation to the grief of loss, to the challenging work of supporting a community in crisis.  Today, we're examining the deeper psychological impact of disaster on communities. Dr. David Eisenman has spent more than two decades studying how disasters affect public health and community resilience. As dire...

Help us love beyond disaster at salarmy.us/socalfire . Last week, we explored what home means—those mental souvenirs we collect, the everyday moments that make a space our own, and the devastating impact when that sanctuary is suddenly gone. We heard about The Salvation Army's immediate response to the wildfires that have ravaged Los Angeles communities. Understanding, of course, things are changi...

Help us love beyond disaster at salarmy.us/socalfire. As wildfires burn across Southern California, The Salvation Army is there. We're there before, during and after disasters strike and are committed to serving the whole person—physically, emotionally and spiritually. With thousands of structures burned, so many have lost so much.  What would you take if you had to leave?  I'm sure you too have c...

What are your plans for the New Year? As we step into 2025, many of us are thinking about resolutions, goals and what lies ahead. But what if planning for the year ahead was less about our own agendas and more about trusting God's plans? In this timely rebroadcast, we're revisiting our conversation with Megan Fate Marshman, who continues to serve as a teaching pastor at Willow Creek Community Chur...