I remember when I was in college there was a little towny bar that would fill up every night of the week. I didn't always go, but I visited often enough, and every night around 10 pm a small, frail looking woman about 70-ish years old would come in wearing a Salvation Army uniform. She would walk through the pub with a tamborine (no I'm not making that up) and people would fill the tamborine with loose change and the occasional bill. She never stopped smiling, never failed to show up, and always left with her tamborine overflowing with coins.

Well, folks, it's time to put some more cash in the tamborine.

And be sure to stop by Professor Reynold's blog for an absurdly comprehensive list of charity and donation options as well as up-to-the-minute news from New Orleans.