The Spirit of Volunteerism

Today's New York Times reviews a report on the current spirit of volunteerism in America.  In That Spirit of Volunteerism, 60 Million Strong Phyllis Korkki writes that accoridng to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, during the period September 2006 to September 2007, more than 60 million Americans volunteered through or for an orgainzation.  These volunteers spent a median of 52 hours on their volunteer work.  As to the identity of these volunteers, a higher percfentgae of women volunteer than men, and people between the ages of 35 and 54 are more likely to volunteer than those younger or older.  Even with more than 60 million Americans volunteering during the period, the volunteer rate has fallen from 28.8 percent from 2003 through 2005, to 26.2 percent in 2007.

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