With all the negative headlines from the ongoing pandemic, there have been positive stories of neighbors helping neighbors and other selfless acts — and according to a new survey, it’s contagious.
Sixty-five percent of Americans who took part in a poll says the pandemic has inspired a “wake-up call” for them to help their communities.
The non-scientific survey of 2,000 Americans commissioned by sanitizer company Muse Health showed 52% of respondents started volunteering for the very first time because of the pandemic. Of those, 35% say they’re delivering food to essential workers, 23% say they’re pitching in to help the elderly or incapacitated to maintain their homes, and 20% say they’ve volunteered at a food pantry.
However, 70% say they’d love to volunteer but haven’t done so because of safety concerns regarding proper sanitizing, social distancing, and mask wearing.
More than a third of those polled say knowing friends and neighbors who were in need inspired them to volunteer, while 17% said seeing their friends and neighbors pitching to help others inspired them to follow suit.
The survey also showed that while 73% believed donating money and other items to aid pandemic efforts is fine, getting out and helping others personally is more fulfilling. In fact, 70% say they plan to volunteer more when they get the COVID-19 vaccine.