Teeming with Helpers

On the eve of Giving Tuesday, a day touted as a “global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world,” I examine Americans’ helping, volunteering, and giving habits across geographic regions based upon American Communities Project’s first public opinion survey of more than 5,000 Americans.

An excerpt from my latest piece “Supporting Community — a Way of Life Across America”:

“‘When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping,’” Fred Rogers once told his “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood” audience.

“America continues to be a nation teeming with helpers. Very rural county types have the highest helping rates. In both the young, more diverse Native American Lands and the older homogenous Aging Farmlands, 93% of residents said they helped a relative, neighbor, or friend in their community in the past year, according to the recent American Communities Project/Ipsos Study.”