Who's volunteering?

Church folks. That answer probably doesn’t surprise busy members of ELCA congregations, but it’s nice to know numbers to back it up.

A recent national survey by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans shows that more American adults volunteer through their place of worship—30 percent—than through any other organization.

Next to recruit people willing to help out were: charitable organizations, 28 percent; schools, 24 percent; and employers, 16 percent.

In all, 57 percent of people interviewed reported they had done volunteer work in the past 12 months, while 43 percent said they didn’t volunteer through a third party.

Brad Hewitt, Thrivent’s senior vice president for volunteer programs, observed: “Our experience is that faith often prompts individuals to serve others.”