Prairie residents donating less money to charity this year: poll

Watch above: Prairie philanthropy

REGINA – A new poll on charitable financial giving shows that, though we’re donating significantly more than the Canadian average, the amount we’re donating has dropped by about one-third compared to last year.

“Prairie residents have remained generous but what we’ve seen is a little bit of donor fatigued,” said Paul Seipp, regional vice president of personal banking at the Bank of Montreal (BMO) in Winnipeg.

Donor fatigue, namely after fundraising events such as flood relief and a further impacted disposable income are couple of the major factors, he said.

The 2014 BMO charitable giving report poll, produced by Pollara, was done for BMO and released Friday. It shows that, over the past 12 months, Canadians have donated an average of $624. People in the prairies donated an average of $951.

“I really don’t think it’s a concern because it’s still showing that we’re leading the pack, next to Alberta, which kind of falls in line with our economy, right,” said Michelle Grunerud, the communications and community engagement coordinator at the South Saskatchewan Community Foundation (SSCF).

Regardless of the lower numbers, the SSCF is not bracing for a decrease of donations this year. Even if financially there is a decrease, there are always other ways of helping.

“Maybe not everyone’s giving donations in cash, but people are getting involved in volunteer work and getting more involved in their community,” she said.

Despite the decline, the poll also found that prairie residents plan on donating $1,109 next year.

“Saskatchewan has undergone its own boom and we have started to really prosper as a province,” said Stephanie Kohlruss, the national philanthropy day director for the Association of Fundraising Professionals in Regina.

The prosperity is something Kohlruss said helps our giving ways, though that isn’t the only reason.

“We are comprised of small towns and villages and small cities,” she said. “It takes working together to be a success and that’s where that extension comes from.”

According to Pollara, the poll was conducted in October. A random sample of 1,003 Canadians 18 years and older was used. The results are accurate between plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.