D.C. Region's Volunteer Ethic Stronger Than U.S. Average

Robyn Reals, right, assists Buu Ai, 65, of Arlington at the Arlington Food Assistance Center. Reals was volunteering with Arlington Church of the Brethren. The typical suburban volunteer in the D.C. region logs an average of 60 hours of donated time a year, compared with the national average of 50 hours. (By Nikki Kahn -- The Washington Post)

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By Annie Gowen

Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, July 9, 2007; Page A01

Residents of the Washington region volunteer at a rate higher than the national average despite grueling commutes and fast-paced lives, according to a federal study of volunteerism in major metropolitan areas to be released today.

The wide-ranging study by the Corporation for National and Community Service -- the federal agency that administers volunteer programs such as AmeriCorps -- is the first comprehensive look at volunteering rates in cities since the Census Bureau began collecting such data in 2002.

Research found that among the nation's 50 largest metro areas, those with well-educated, affluent homeowners had higher volunteer rates; those with longer commuting times had less participation.

Locally, however, it belied the notion that Washington area residents are becoming more isolated and cut off from civic life as they spend more time in their cars, struggling through the second-longest commutes in the country.

The region has an average annual volunteer rate of 32 percent, compared with 28 percent nationally, the study says. The typical suburban volunteer here logs an average of 60 hours of such work a year, compared with 48 hours for their District-dwelling counterparts or 50 hours nationally.

Although some organizations still struggle to find help, Washington's volunteer rate outpaced citizen involvement in other larger metro areas, such as Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, the study says.

Researchers say that the region's residents volunteer more because they are naturally civic-minded -- many having come here for public service or government jobs -- and well-educated. They're also living in a place that's a "mecca" for nonprofit organizations with philanthropic causes, said David Eisner, the corporation's chief executive.

"There is a deeper civic culture here in Washington," Eisner said. "People are thinking about government and about the responsibilities of citizens in a way that may not be true in other cities across the country."

It makes perfect sense, said Wendy Balazik, 31, an Alexandria resident and association employee who volunteers at two food pantries.

"D.C. attracts the type of person who is passionate about issues. . . . That doesn't just stop when we leave the office," she said.

Stressed-out wonks who spend weekdays buried in briefing books also long to do something in their off hours in which they can see meaningful results right away -- such as making sandwiches for a soup kitchen or tutoring for a literacy program, volunteers say.

More than 60 percent of local residents volunteered through their places of worship, their children's school or youth service organizations such as the Girl Scouts, said Robert Grimm, director of research and policy development for the Corporation for National and Community Service. Slightly fewer residents volunteer through their churches here than nationally -- about 30 percent in the Washington metropolitan area, compared with 35 percent across the country.