Half of Americans say time is best gift to charity

MINNEAPOLIS — Fifty percent of Americans believe that giving one’s time to charity is more important than giving money, a poll by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans has indicated.

Twenty-two percent of those surveyed said money is the more important gift to charitable causes and 23 percent said time and money had equal importance.

“This research suggests that there’s an emotional, visceral connection to volunteering that just cannot be duplicated by writing a check,” said Brad Hewitt, Thrivent Financial’s senior vice president of charitable programs and volunteering, in a statement.

The survey also indicated that people who are committed to prayer and regular worship attendance are most likely to say they have volunteered with a church, school or nonprofit organization in the past 12 months. Sixty-six percent of those who attend religious services weekly and 58 percent of those who pray daily said they had volunteered in the past year. In comparison, 28 percent of those who rarely or never prayed and 25 percent of those who never attend religious services said they had volunteered in that time frame.

Churches and synagogues are most likely to receive financial support from Americans, the survey found. Fifty-seven percent of Americans said they financially support faith groups, compared to 33 percent who support educational institutions, 30 percent who give to medical research and 27 percent who aid social service organizations.