How Americans Support Charities

November 14, 2002 | Read Time: 1 minute

Nearly 70 percent of all American households that donated in 2000 gave to religious organizations, according to a report released this month by Independent Sector, a coalition of charities and foundations. The average contribution to such groups was $1,358.

The report, providing details on giving and volunteering trends in America, expands on preliminary findings released by Independent Sector last year (The Chronicle, November 15, 2001). The findings are based on information provided by 4,216 adults in response to a poll conducted in 2001. Eighty-nine percent of respondents said they donated money in 2000.

Copies of the report, “Giving and Volunteering in the United States, 2001,” are available from Independent Sector’s Publications Center, P.O. Box 343, Waldorf, Md. 20604-0343; (888) 860-8118; fax (301) 843-0159. The cost is $60 each for Independent Sector members; $75 apiece for nonmembers. Members can also get a free copy of the report’s executive summary by going to the organization’s Web site at http://www.IndependentSector.org.

AVERAGE CHARITABLE DONATION, BY INCOME LEVEL