Ghost of Midnight

Americans working with nieghbors to solve local problems — Up 31%

From USAToday…

More Americans became engaged in their communities last year as the economy weakened, a federal agency reported Tuesday.

“There’s a compassion boom going on,” says Robert Grimm of the Corporation for National & Community Service, which oversees AmeriCorps, Senior Corps and other service programs.

FIND A CHARITY: A comprehensive look at giving in the USA

“Instead of people worrying about their own problems,” he says, “they’re thinking of others.”

The number of volunteers increased 2% from 60.8 million in 2007 to 61.8 million in 2008, according to the agency’s 2009 Volunteering In America report, based on annual Census Bureau surveys. Among young adults (16 to 24), the number of volunteers increased 5.7%. On average, 26% of Americans continued to donate their time.

The findings contrast with data from the Giving USA Foundation showing a decline in charitable giving for the first time since 1987.

Two forms of volunteerism jumped sharply: the number of people who worked with neighbors to solve a local problem rose 31% from 2007 to 2008, and the number of people who attended community meetings rose 17% last year.

“This report suggests that Americans are responding to the hardship around them by reaching out in service to others, giving their time when they cannot give their money,” first lady Michelle Obama said in a statement.

More non-profit groups rely on volunteers as 80% report significant economic stress, according to a Johns Hopkins University survey.

Grimm says volunteering helps people develop skills and feel valuable…

Volunteering tends to be highest in midsize cities, particularly in the Midwest.

“We’re at the beginning of a generosity high, a sense that we can make a difference,” says Claire Gaudiani, historian of philanthropy at New York University.

Check volunteering in your state at www.volunteeringinamerica.gov/find.cfm

UPDATE: The Vermont angle… click here.