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Ohio residents are giving, helpful people. We already know that. But it is encouraging to get confirmation in the form of WalletHub's "Most Charitable States for 2024," in which Ohio ranked 10th in the nation.
According to the study, Ohio is 28th for number of charities per capita, 26th for the percentage of the population who donated time, 3rd for the percentage of the population collecting/distributing food, 27th for volunteer rate and 24th for volunteer hours per capita.
Nearly 61 million people volunteer in the U.S., serving a combined total of 4.1 billion hours per year, the equivalent of $122.9 billion worth of service, according to WalletHub.
And Ohio is a significant part of making that difference. We also come in as part of the "poorest and most charitable" category, meaning residents here try to help others even when it's not as easy as it might be for those in richer states.
"Americans are donating less time and money to charitable causes. For instance, total volunteer hours dropped by 2.82 billion nationwide, a 40.7% decrease from the last survey period," said WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe. "People have busier schedules now and many are struggling to make ends meet with the cost of inflation, leaving them with less time and money available to donate."
Not here. Of course we're busy, too many are struggling to make ends meet, and giving can be a strain. But in Ohio, we do it, anyway. Those who dig a little deeper when times are tough are to be commended. Sadly, the need is only growing. And the number of those able to give without feeling the pinch is shrinking. We've got to keep it up, however.
As always, if you are able to meet a need, please consider doing so. But the wonderful thing about Ohio is how many of you already are doing just that.