I want to focus on an area where Utahns — particularly the women — outshine most every other state: volunteering. I’m thankful for the civic engagement among so many wonderful Utah women!

From 2006-2020, Utah has ranked first in the nation for percentage of residents who regularly volunteer at 51% — a full 20 points higher than the national average. Nationally, women’s volunteer rates are six percentage points higher than men’s (27.8% vs. 21.8%) and the gap holds for Utah as well.

Not surprisingly, its Utah’s parents who volunteer the most at 63%. While not specified, I am sure that many of the hours given are on behalf of their kids. I love that Utah parents make it a priority to support their children and are willing to work around jobs and other obligations to be there. In fact, it may surprise people to learn that the demographic who volunteers the most is working mothers.

When it comes to our kids, we show up. I really appreciate that more Utah workplaces are providing flexibility to parents to shift their work hours and location to be able to be there for their children.

. . . .And if you want volunteering quantified numerically, at least 1.15 million Utahns gave 133.9 million volunteer service hours in 2018, the monetary value of which is an estimated $3.2 billion. Here are a few of the findings:

97.8% of residents regularly talk or spend time with friends and family

70.4% of residents do favors for neighbors

39.6% of residents do something positive for the neighborhood

42.0% of residents participate in local groups or organizations

In addition to volunteerism and service, Utah also ranks highest in charitable giving, and that combined with our proclivity for volunteerism recently earned us the number one spot as the most charitable state.