A recent survey by Dunham & Co. revealed that nearly half of the Christian adults in the United States have reduced their charitable giving because of the economy’s decline, in particular, due to the rise of food and gasoline prices.
The people who most feel the economic pinch are those who are the most supportive of charitable organizations – those over 55 years of age.
The survey found that frequent church attendees are less likely to let the economy decrease their giving, while those who rarely attend church are more likely to let the economy affect their giving.
Even though families with larger incomes are less affected by the economy, still 1 in 3 households with incomes over $100,000 say the economy is altering their charitable giving.
Rick Dunham, president and CEO of Dunham & Co., says, “With nearly one-third of households with incomes over $100,000 indicating that the economy is impacting their charitable giving, organizations replying on major donor revenue need to carefully assess the status of those donors and then stay in close touch with them […] Organizational leadership must be careful not to presume that major pledges will be fulfilled.”
Information taken from: “Economic Downturn Takes Toll on Charitable Giving.” Dallas Business Journal. www.bizjournals.com/dallas.
--Ashley High is a Research Assistant at Christian Foundation Grants (www.christianfoundationgrants.com) which is subscription database of foundations that provide grants to faith based organizations. iDonate.com is a website (www.iDonate.com) that allows ministries to receive non cash gifts o