VOLUNTEERISM

What Was Measured?
Two measurements of volunteering are tracked.  The first measurement is the percent of the county's population that registered as potential volunteers with the Volunteer Center of San Mateo County and those the center referred to an agency needing volunteers during three years.  The second measurement is the percent of the county's population that volunteered for Coastal Cleanup Day in San Mateo County from 1991 to 1995.

The measurements offered here are a very small sample because tracking volunteering is very difficult.  First, the places where volunteers work are so many and so varied-schools, hospitals, museums, theater groups, environmental groups and agencies and service groups of many kinds.  There are over 400 agencies that are registered with the Volunteer Center.  In most cases, these agencies do their own recruiting for volunteers and only ask for assistance for special occasions or additional help.  Secondly, many agencies do not collect statistics on volunteers.

There is also the question of whether the number of people is more important than the number of hours served.  In this report the number of people, not the hours spent, is measured.

Why Is It Important?
Volunteers add to the quality of life in a community in many ways-from serving as a museum docent or classroom aide to cleaning a beach.  While contributing to the community, civic engagement also allows community members to use their unique talents and interests outside of the workplace and home.  Inequities will always exist in any community; some people are disabled, sick, or in need of assistance.  In a sustainable society, the community has a support system in place--often using volunteers--to assure that the basic needs of all citizens are met.

What Was Found?
The Volunteer Center of San Mateo Co. keeps records on the number of volunteers who register and those who are referred to an agency.  They do not follow up to determine "matches." Women continue to volunteer more than men, though the percentage has declined slightly since 1991-92 from 74 percent women to 67 percent in 1995.  Minority volunteers have increased over this same period, and in two out of the three years recorded, most volunteers were employed.  Volunteers are of all ages with the largest percent of volunteers falling in the 25 to 45 -year old range.  The number of individuals referred jumped from 3,615 in 1991,92 to 4,91 1 in 1994, but dropped again in 1995 to 3,660.

The numbers of volunteers for Coastal Cleanup Day in San Mateo Co. from 1991 to 1995 were as follows: 1,238, 824, 1,257, 1,050, and 1,208.

What Is The Trend?
There is no clear trend evidenced from either of the two sets of measurements.  For unknown reasons 1992 appears to have been a bad year compared to other years.  In the case of the coastal cleanup the reason for fewer volunteers might be as simple as bad weather.  There has been no significant decline in volunteerism from 1991 to the present evidenced in these measurements.

Sources: Cathy Maupin, Executive Dir. of the Volunteer Center of San Mateo County supplied statistics for the total number of registered and referred individuals, and percentages in each category.  Kristi Timmings of the Sierra Club supplied statistics on the number of volunteers who participated in Coastal Cleanup Day in San Mateo County.  Population statistics are from the CA Dept. of Finance, Demographic Research Unit, Sacramento.

Researcher: Marcia Pagels