Midwest Leads Nation In Volunteering, Government Study Says

Sunday, July 8th 2007, 9:00 pm

By: News On 6

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The spirit of volunteerism is thriving in the heartland, but not so much on the coasts. Midwesterners are more likely to volunteer their time than are people elsewhere in the United States, according to a government study being released Monday.

The highest rates were in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area in Minnesota, where more than four in 10 adults volunteered.

The Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency, used Census Bureau data to determine the share of people age 16 and older who had volunteered their time in the previous year.

The study provides three-year averages, for 2004 through 2006, for the 50 largest metropolitan areas.

Minneapolis-Saint Paul was followed at the top by Salt Lake City; Austin, Texas; Omaha, Nebraska; and Seattle.

Tulsa, Oklahoma, ranks 10th on the list, while Oklahoma City is tied for 20th.