# Presentation: 243258

## Volunteer Trends in the 

- Volunteer Trends in the
- 21st Century

**Dr. Sarah Jane Rehnborg**
- RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service
- University. of Texas at Austin
- September 30, 2005

## Seniors contribute in different ways.

- Those 65 and older contributed a median of 96 hours annually compared to the 52 annual hours of other Americans.
- And volunteers 55 and over use the time they devote to service in slightly different ways than do volunteers younger than 55.

## Time Use Examples

- _Seniors are more likely_
- to be engaged in administrative and support activities
- food preparation and related activities
- indoor and outdoor maintenance, repair & clean-up
- public health activities

- _Seniors are less likely_
- to spend as much time traveling to their service destination as younger volunteers

## In addition ...

- Seniors are more likely to devote time to volunteering on
-      Tuesdays,
-      Wednesdays, and
-      Mondays
- (in that order) and they devote more time on those days to service than do their younger counterparts.

- Source on time use information: American Time Use Survey, 2003. Department of Labor.

## Civic engagement will be at least a fairly important part of retirement according to 56% of the respondents to an AARP survey.

- Yet, nearly half of all retirees (45%) expect to continue working into their 70s or later.

## The trends suggest that a new life-stage is emerging – 

- the “Third Age” or
- “Midcourse”
- – that encompasses the 50s, 60s and even the 70s.

## launching second or third careers

- developing new identities and new ways of productive engagement
- new patterns of relating to spouses, children, siblings, friends & parents
- enacting role shifts that are products of their past and precursors to their future life course

- Seniors are on the move –

- on the move to something else ...

## Top Motivations to Volunteer

- Personal responsibility to help others -  65%
- Makes life more satisfying		-   58%
- Organization has established track record - 51%
- Help own community		-    50%
- Make a difference on an issue	-    49%
- Keeps you active			-    46%
- Someone you know was affected 	-    44%
- Religious beliefs			-    42%
- Opportunity to use skills		-    42%

- AARP:  Time and Money 2003

## So what does this mean?

- Seniors want  to serve. Groups and organizations must have the capacity to engage & sustain senior volunteer involvement.
- Capacity requires top level support, A vision for volunteer involvement,a management infrastructure, and staff evaluated in part on their capacity to work with volunteers.

## Infrastructure requires funding, yet few foundations or public sector grant programs fund infrastructure or operating expenses. 
Federal legislation must expand beyond public safety and CNCS service initiatives.  Other federal agencies (Interior, Agricultural, Veterans Affairs, SBA, etc.) engage volunteers effectively. Collaborate, learn from their success and expand the vision for seniors in service in the 21st Century.   

- Federal legislation must expand beyond public safety and CNCS service initiatives.  Other federal agencies (Interior, Agricultural, Veterans Affairs, SBA, etc.) engage volunteers effectively. Collaborate, learn from their success and expand the vision for seniors in service in the 21st Century.

## But Remember....

- In the final analysis, older volunteers are volunteers who have aged....  Fostering a culture of service begins early in life and is greatly enhanced through family service opportunities.  Legislative should facilitate senior service while promoting a national culture of caring, serving and giving.