Why volunteerism has reached historic high in US

Christian Science Monitor: Why volunteerism has reached historic high in US

The uptick in serving – 29 percent of Americans did in 2005 – is being driven by older teens, baby boomers, and seniors.

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Those small donations of time are adding up: More Americans than ever before are volunteering. In 2005, 29 percent of adults were serving – a 30-year high, according to a December report by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS).

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Three age groups – older teens, baby boomers, and seniors – are driving the upsurge. And as these teens grow and boomers retire, bucking the expectation they will slow down, together they could expand volunteerism even more, Eisner says. The CNCS, a federal agency that since 1993 has fostered civic engagement through community service, has launched a push to boost the number of US volunteers by 10 million to 75 million by 2010.