ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, October 10, 1996 TAG: 9610100079
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Chicago Tribune
Americans gave more to charity last year, but the money came from a smaller group of people, according to a Gallup survey released Wednesday.
The biennial study showed that among those households giving to charity, the average contribution was $1,017 in 1995, compared to $880 in 1993. When adjusted for inflation, the difference is around 10 percent, which represents the first statistical increase in giving since 1989.
That average, however, does not take into account the 31 percent of households that did not give to any charity in 1995. The number of nongivers is up 4 percent from last year, and higher than it has been since the study in 1988 began measuring previous years' giving.
The Gallup organization conducted the survey for Independent Sector, a nonprofit group representing nearly 800 voluntary organizations.
``Our intent with these surveys is to take the pulse of the American household,'' said Sara Melendez, president of Independent Sector. ``The findings leave us cautiously optimistic about the future of giving and volunteering in our country.''
When all individuals, givers and nongivers, are counted, the average household gave 2 percent more than two years ago, after inflation.
The drop in the number of households giving to charity represents a growing gap between the affluent and the poor, study organizers said.
Officials at philanthropic organizations said other factors, such as demographics, may partially explain the drop in the number of contributors.
``It could be baby boomers trying to take care of their parents while sending their kids to school, or maybe people are not much better off than they were a year ago,'' said Valerie Lies, president of the Donors Forum of Chicago. ``I don't know if there's just some crisp answer.''
The nature of polling could be a factor in the growing gap of giving between income levels, said Daniel Borochoff, president of the American Institute of Philanthropy, in St. Louis. Many in poorer communities tend to help others in ways that can't be gauged, Borochoff said.
``It's kind of a difficult thing to report if a neighbor just got out of jail and asks you for money and you give it to them,'' said Borochoff. ``Those things don't show up in the statistics, but those people are doing a good thing as well.''
LENGTH: Medium: 51 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart by AP.by CNB