Philanthropy: voluntary promotion to benefit human welfare.

Face it, we all have a cause we support. All throughout school your counselors, teachers, mentors encourage you to give back to the community. Even in the professional world, we use our free time to help others, whether it is for a resume booster or ego push. I was shocked to find out from the Phoenix Business Journal this week that volunteering is down in Arizona, but up in the rest of the country. We have so many great organizations around the valley, how can this be possible? According to the Corporation for National and Community Service,  in 2009 around 25% of Valley residents volunteer an average of 34.5 hours of their time annually through a formal organization. In general, Arizona ranks about 44th-45th in the nation for volunteer rate.

Volunteering can be categorized in several ways; unpaid internship, participation on a committee for a professional organization, or a nonprofit. As I look back at my calendar the last year, I have involved myself with all three! I think it has helped me make connections in this tiny little pond we call Phoenix.

I would think with the  high unemployment rate, more people would find salvation in volunteering? So, people are volunteering less when they have more time to give? Strange conundrum.

So stop reading this and go out to your favorite community organization and give back! AZPRC donates a few hours a week to socialize the animals up for adoption at the Arizona Animal Welfare league in Phoenix, great organization if you ask me! Volunteer Orientation is the second Saturday of every month, you can find more details here!