|
E-mail this page to a friend!
Senior Citizen Volunteers
Senior Citizens Not Likely Volunteers but Become
Very Committed
Study finds seniors volunteer less often
but contribute more hours
|
U.S.
Volunteers 2005
Average hours, volunteer rate |
|
Age Group |
Hours |
Rate |
|
16 to 24 years:
|
36 |
24.4% |
|
25 to 34 years:
|
36 |
25.3% |
|
35 to 44 years:
|
48 |
34.5% |
|
45 to 54 years:
|
50 |
32.7% |
|
55 to 64 years:
|
56 |
30.2% |
|
65 years and
up: |
96 |
24.8% |
|
Nation:
|
50 |
28.8%
|
|
Male:
|
52 |
25.0%
|
|
Female:
|
50 |
32.4%
|
|
Married:
|
52 |
34.1%
|
|
Other:
|
44 |
23.1%
|
June 12, 2006 – Senior Citizens are much less
likely than most younger Americans to volunteer for community service but,
when they do, they will devote many more hours to the effort. It takes almost two baby boomers to provide as many
volunteer hours as one volunteer age 65 or older. These are some of the
findings released today in a state-by-state study of volunteerism by the
federal government's Corporation for National and Community Service,
which includes the Senior Corps.
This first-ever federal report finds that states
vary widely in how, when, and what percent of their citizens volunteer,
while in every state women volunteer at a higher rate than men, and
women with children and women who work have higher volunteer rates than
other women. The study also found that of America’s 65.5 million adult
volunteers, more serve through religious organizations than any other
type of organization.
“Volunteering in America: State Trends and
Rankings” is based upon the most statistically significant study of
volunteering ever conducted in America – an annual survey of 60,000
households begun in 2002 by the U.S. Census Bureau.
It is the first study to give a detailed breakdown
of America’s volunteering habits and patterns by state and region.
“This Administration, together with the nation’s
leading volunteer-based organizations and service commissions in every
state, wants to see millions more Americans bringing hope and solutions
to our communities through volunteering – 10 million more, in fact, by
2010,” said David Eisner, CEO of the Corporation for National and
Community Service, an independent Federal agency.
|
Best and Worst States for Rates of Volunteering (Seniors & All
Ages) |
|
Senior Volunteers (65+ Years Old) |
Volunteers All Ages |
|
Top 10 States |
Top 10 States |
|
1. Utah |
51.8% |
1. Utah
|
48%
|
|
2. Minnesota |
42.2% |
2. Nebraska
|
42.8%
|
|
3. Nebraska |
40.6% |
3. Minnesota
|
40.7%
|
|
4. South Dakota |
38.0% |
4. Iowa
|
39.2%
|
|
5. North Dakota |
35.7% |
5. Alaska
|
38.9%
|
|
6. Iowa |
35.5% |
6. Wyoming
|
38.8% |
|
7. Kansas |
34.9% |
6. South
Dakota |
38.8% |
|
8. Washington |
32.8% |
8. Kansas
|
38.6% |
|
9. Oregon |
32.0% |
9. Vermont
|
38.1% |
|
10. Vermont |
31.8% |
10. Montana
|
37.9% |
|
Bottom 6 States |
Bottom 5 States |
|
46. Louisiana
|
18.6% |
47. West
Virginia |
24.6% |
|
46. Tennessee
|
18.6% |
48. Florida
|
24.1% |
|
46. Rhode
Island |
18.6% |
49.
Louisiana |
22.7% |
|
49. Hawaii
|
17.6% |
50. New York
|
21.3% |
|
50. New York
|
17.4% |
51. Nevada
|
18.8% |
|
51. Nevada
|
13.7% |
|
|
“The study we’re releasing today will help every
state create stronger volunteer networks by showing what’s working,
what’s not, and highlight the best opportunities to engage citizens in
the future.”
On a national level, 65.4 million or 28.8 percent
of American adults volunteered in 2005, an increase of nearly six
million volunteers since 2002. American volunteers spent a median of 50
hours per year volunteering, and gave a total of 8.2 billion hours of
volunteer service in 2005. Using Independent Sector’s estimate of the
dollar value of a volunteer’s time, volunteering in America equated to a
value of $147.6 billion dollars in 2005. The typical American volunteer
is a white female who gives 50 hours per year volunteering through a
religious organization as a tutor, mentor, coach, or referee.
| |
Related Stories |
|
| |
Senior Corps Foster Grandparent Honored for 27 Year
Service
Senior Corps volunteers receive national awards for
outstanding service
May 30, 2006- Foster Grandparent Ora Rakestraw of
Sacramento received a Gold Honoree Mentor Award this month in
recognition of her 27 years of service in the Senior Corps. As a mentor
to third-graders, she works with those who are reading at the lowest
levels. Her success is marked by her students’ reading scores, which
increased 10 percentile points in 2004.
Read more...
New Campaign Urges America’s 77 Million Baby Boomers
to Volunteer
"Get Involved" government campaign taps boomer’s
idealism and talents
Dec.
27, 2005 - Public service announcements will begin running in January,
when the first wave of baby boomers start to turn 60. Recognizing the
extraordinary potential for social good among America’s 77 million baby
boomers, the Corporation for National and Community Service begins a
multi-year public service ad campaign that asks baby boomers to get
involved in their communities.
Read more...
Read more
on
Senior Citizen Volunteers |
|
Among key findings, the study reveals that:
● Females volunteer at significantly higher rates
than do males in every state; nationwide, women with children under age
18 volunteer at a significantly higher rate (39.9%) than do women
without young children (29%), and women who work volunteer at a
significantly higher rate (36.1%) than women who do not work (27.2%).
● The greatest percentage of volunteers serve primarily through
religious organizations (34.8%).
● The highest regional volunteer rate last year was in the Midwest, at
33.3%. The largest growth in volunteering since 2002 has come from the
South (2.4 million) and the West (2 million).
● The top volunteer activities by category are mentoring, tutoring,
coaching, and refereeing (35%), fundraising (29.7%) and collecting,
preparing, distributing, or serving food (26.3%).
● Adult volunteering generally follows a life cycle, with people age
35-54 volunteering at the highest rate, and rates subsequently declining
as people age, particularly for individuals over 65.
“Volunteers are the lifeblood of our nation. From
schools and shelters to hospitals and hotlines, volunteers are vital to
America’s social and economic well-being,” said Eisner. “By giving us a
clear picture of who volunteers, this report is a powerful tool for
expanding volunteering in America.”
The Corporation is the nation’s largest grant maker
for volunteering and service, and it administers the Senior Corps,
AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs. It will be working
with a broad-based coalition of nonprofit, corporate, and government
leaders to increase the number of volunteers in America from its current
level of 65 million to 75 million by the year 2010.
This initiative, called “10 by 10,” will be
launched at the National Conference on Volunteering and Service, an
annual gathering of volunteer sector leaders taking place June 18-20 in
Seattle. The Corporation put forth the 10 million goal as part of its
five- year Strategic Plan released in February 2006.
“It is encouraging to see there is an increasing
trend of Americans from diverse backgrounds who are responding to
President Bush’s call to service. However, there is still a need for
more Americans to understand how serving their neighbors would have
positive social and economic effects at the local and national levels,"
said Desiree T. Sayle, who is the Deputy Assistant to President George
W. Bush and Director of USA Freedom Corps. “We at USA Freedom Corps have
great expectations that this report will be resourceful in helping to
expand volunteer service in America.”
In terms of state and regional differences, the
study found that:
● One state – Utah – led the nation in virtually
all categories of volunteering, including highest volunteer rate (48%),
annual hours donated by a typical volunteer (96), and overall volunteer
rates by seniors (51.8%), college students (62.9%), and young adults
(45.4%).
● The volunteer rate in the Midwest is 29% higher than the rate in the
Northeast, 21.5% higher than the rate in the South, and 14% higher than
the rate in the West.
● The states with the highest volunteering rates are Utah (48%),
Nebraska (42.8), Minnesota (40.7), Iowa (39.2), and Alaska (38.9) – all
well above the national average of 28.8 percent.
● The states with the highest number of hours contributed by the
typical volunteer are Utah (96), Idaho (64), and Arizona, Maryland and
Montana (60) – all above the national median of 50 hours.
● In general, volunteer rates for minorities (race and ethnicity) are
substantially lower than non-Hispanic whites in most states.
● While the influence of religion and the size of a state’s rural
population appear to have an overall positive influence on volunteer
rates, some states with lower religious activity or substantial urban
populations (such as Vermont and Michigan, respectively) have very
strong volunteer rates. Meanwhile, Bible Belt states have a lower
volunteer rate than most Midwest and West states.
Robert Grimm, Director of the Corporation’s Office
of Research and Policy Development, noted how the changing demographics
of America could have a substantial impact on the future of
volunteering.
“The fact that minorities have lower volunteer
rates may suggest that organizations will need to reach out to them more
in the future or face volunteer shortages as white non-Hispanics become
a smaller part of the U.S. population. Similarly, with the aging of the
boomer population, we need to challenge ourselves to make sure their
volunteering prevalence does not decline,” said Grimm.
“We believe that a better future for all Americans
includes a more widespread culture of service and volunteering,” added
Eisner.
“We are committed to working with volunteer and
service-driven organizations everywhere to expand the number of
Americans who volunteer by 15 percent over the next five years. America
needs more mentors for our youth, companions for our elderly, and
helpers after disasters. I encourage any American who wants to make a
difference to visit
www.volunteer.gov
to find the right volunteer opportunity for you.”
The full report, including highlights,
state-by-state rankings, profiles of volunteering in each region and
state, statistical tables, and technical notes, is available at
www.volunteer.gov
or http://www.nationalservice.gov.
Background
“Volunteering in America: State Trends and
Rankings” presents an overview of volunteering at both the national and
regional levels, as well as state rankings on volunteering indicators
such as volunteering rate and intensity, and volunteering among seniors
and students. The report features a two-page state profile for each
state and the District of Columbia that displays information on the
number of people volunteering, the volunteering rate, the number of
hours volunteered, the primary organizations at which volunteers perform
work, and the types of activities volunteers perform in each state. The
report is based on data obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau
of Labor Statistics through a “volunteering supplement” to the Current
Population Survey (CPS) from 2002 to 2005. The volunteer supplement is
administered annually to approximately 60,000 households nationwide.
The Corporation for National and Community Service
improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement
through service and volunteering. Each year, the Corporation provides
opportunities for nearly 2 million Americans of all ages and backgrounds
to serve their communities and country through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps,
and Learn and Serve America. National service participants help
thousands of national and community nonprofit organizations, faith-based
groups, schools, and local agencies meet critical community needs in
education, the environment, public safety, disaster response, and other
areas. Together with the USA Freedom Corps, the Corporation is working
to build a culture of citizenship, service, and responsibility in
America.
>> For more information, go to
http://www.nationalservice.gov or
http://www.volunteer.gov/
Click to More Senior News on the
Front Page
Copyright: SeniorJournal.com |
