Giving Tuesday and #MakeTodayMatter are latest examples of generosity among Canadians

TORONTO, Dec. 2, 2014 /CNW/ - In just its second year in Canada, it's easy to see why Giving Tuesday is quickly becoming such an important day for Canadian 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 favourite causes and do something good for their communities. And as a new report from TD Economics published today shows, it's tailor made for Canada, with nearly 85 per cent of Canadians donating to charity each year and almost half of those aged 15 or older volunteering their time.

"Canadians are a generous people, particularly when it comes to giving their time for worthy causes," said Craig Alexander, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist at TD Bank Group. "The total value of the time and money Canadians give each year is more than $15 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 Canada 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 – more than four in 10 Canadian volunteers did so as part of a group project with friends or colleagues, while a quarter got involved by joining family members already helping others.

"A recent TD survey found that roughly 70 per cent of people are inspired to give back when they witness a good deed," said Chris Stamper, Senior Vice President, Corporate Marketing, Community and Environment, TD Bank Group. "That is why we launched our #MakeTodayMatter campaign, which helped 24 TD customers in 24 towns and cities across North America over 24 days in November make a real 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 Stamper hopes will encourage even more Canadians and Americans to give back to their communities.

The TD report shows that volunteerism is growing in Canada, with the volunteer rate, now at 47 per cent, having climbed by nearly two percentage points between 2004 and 2010. And the amount of money donated in Canada is increasing as well, rising about 1.4 per cent each year since data were first collected.

"With the growth in volunteerism that we are seeing, it's no surprise that Canadians are embracing 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 the majority of Canadians 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 hadCDN$922 billion in assets on July 31, 2014. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on theToronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

SOURCE TD Bank Group