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Volunteering, A Way To Help

By Dr. Marciene Mattleman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - At holiday time, we think of "giving back." Latest data from the Department of Labor Statistics shows volunteering is slightly down, yet more than 62 million Americans volunteer annually.

Tutoring and teaching are most popular, as are fundraising, supplying transportation, collecting and serving food.

The last few years have shown that corporations are the largest supporters of volunteerism - with money, resources and employee programs. Numbers of Generation X people, those born between 1965-1981, give greater time than they did earlier in their lives and colleges and universities are giving more credit for work in their communities. At Washington and Lee University, the slogan is Teach, Reach, Feed, Lead.

For adventure, see The Wall Street Journal section on "Saving the World - One Vacation at a Time"— taking an underwater census of fish or restoring property after disasters.

Here at home, consider helping a child learn to read or becoming a mentor. To make the world a better place, visit VolunteerMatch.org.

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