Charitable Giving Can Create Positive, Lasting Impact and Inspire Others

CHERRY HILL, N.J., Dec. 2, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In just its third year, it's easy to see why Giving Tuesday is quickly becoming such an important day for U.S. charities. Taking place on the first Tuesday after the popular Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping days, Giving Tuesday is a day when charities, individuals and organizations come together to launch the "giving season," support their favorite causes and do something good for their communities. And as a new report from TD Economics published today shows, it's tailor made for the U.S., with nearly 95 percent of Americans donating to charity each year and almost half of those aged 16 or older volunteering their time.

"Americans are generous people, and nearly everyone - 95% of households - gives to charity each year," said Craig Alexander, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist at TD Bank Group. "The total value of the time and money Americans give each year is more than $570 billion, but the benefits of giving are much more than that and have lasting impacts on local communities and society as a whole."

The vast majority of volunteers in America say they do it to make a contribution to their community, according to the TD report. Alexander says the report also shows that charitable giving inspires others to get involved – many Americans volunteer as part of a group project with friends or colleagues, or join family members already helping others.

"Americans give almost 8 billion hours of their time volunteering every year, and people are even more inspired to give back when they witness a good deed," said Vinoo Vijay, Chief Marketing Officer, TD Bank. "Our #MakeTodayMatter campaign, which helped 24 TD customers in 24 towns and cities across North America over 24 days in November, gave inspiration by making a difference in their communities in just 24 hours."

Some of the giving moments of TD's #MakeTodayMatter campaign have been captured in a video, which Vijay hopes will encourage even more Americans to give back to their communities.

"With steady volunteerism in the U.S., it's no surprise that Americans embrace events such as Giving Tuesday and #MakeTodayMatter," said Alexander. "They know that an hour of time or a dollar given today can generate significant, positive lasting change, so it's great that just about everyone can find a way to give back that suits both their desire and their ability."

About TD Bank Group

The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group ("TD
 or the "Bank"). TD is the sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves over 22 million customers in three key businesses operating in a number of locations in financial centres around the globe: Canadian Retail, including TD Canada Trust, TD Auto Finance Canada, TD Wealth (Canada), TD Direct Investing, and TD Insurance; U.S. Retail, including TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, TD Auto Finance U.S., TD Wealth (U.S.) and an investment in TD Ameritrade; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the world's leading online financial services firms, with approximately 8.8 million active online and mobile customers. TD had CDN$922 billion in assets on July 31, 2014. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

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SOURCE TD Bank Group