That's probably cause the town always has their hand out

I am a stay at home mom...so we are just struggling for our own basics...We give when we can...

As my salary has stagnated and taxes and water bill have risen, I had to choose food or charity. I chose food to buy and charity to spend time and energy. This study doesn't take into account the hours spent only the money spent.

The town sewer project isn't a charity????

If our taxes and everything else were not so high, maybe we could afford to give to charity

Why dont they show the realestate tax rate of the towns compared to income then you will see why we have no money to give. OH... and thanks Mr Gilman for making us feel even worse about things.

Statistics show that there is a direct correlation between FAITH and giving. States that traditionally have a larger percentage of their population defining themselves as religious (in the Bible Belt, for instance) typically give more. The Northeast, in fact, gives less than any other region in the US, and the six New England states are at the very bottom of the ranking.

My faith has definitely influenced my generosity and I am a true believer in proportional giving. Our family dedicates a percentage of our income to non-profits and important causes each year because we understand the importance of sharing the harvest AND because we want our children to learn by our example.

It's all about choices... I'm guessing that there are only 5-10% of households in the US who truly can't afford to give to charity in some small but meaningful way. The fact is that most people simply choose not to give.

What do I know for sure? "The hand that gives, gathers."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/20/study-less-religious-stat_n_1810425.html

This might mean that other towns are better than Tewksbury when it comes to cheating on their taxes.

I think we did average better that wilmington but not as goo as winchester. The new high school doesn't count or the avon walkers outside the other day which I always generously contribute to. Times are tough. People paychecks are not get any bigger but their bills are. All we can do is our best so congrats tewksbury for the 9.2 mil you were able to contribute.

Our responsibilities need to start with our family and extended family. We have just borrowed huge monies to build new sewer, high school, fire station, police station, library, senior center and more, which now needs to be paid back. Life is a group of choices.

Malcolm, it is a balance. My family gives money to charities and our time. One thing we can all do is volunteer. There are charities all over the area looking for manual labor to sort clothes and food donations. Man a counter to help the needy choose the best foods and clothes for their family. Help serve at a spaghetti supper or pancake breakfast. Serve dinner at a soup kitchen.
I have found my kids get more out of volunteering with groups than seeing me or my wife write out a check of drop a few bucks in a basket. Every time we drive home after spending time, not money, with people who need our help they rave about the special people they met. I have said it a thousand times that they get more out of the giving than the receiver.
One other interesting item I came across a few years ago. Liberals tend to give less to private charities because they believe that is the governments job and if they need more money they should raise taxes. Conservatives believe in private giving and community based assistance such as religious organizations. It also highlighted giving blood and volunteering time. It gave me an insight into the different ways we look at things. It fits in the article Beth linked to as well. The "Bible belt" tends more conservative while the northeast tends more liberal.

Maybe Tewksbury isn't ranked as "generous" with their money, and I get why........ However- I've personally seen the people of Tewksbury donate their time, personal support, and home cooking in times of need on more than one occasion. Sometimes that is worth more than the $. I will never forget how this town rallied about 45-50 families and supported my family 2 summers ago when I had open heart surgery. (You know who you are!!!). People gave gift cards to restaurants, cooked meals every single day for a month, made custom cakes and desserts, drove me to Boston for many follow-up appointments, took days out of work to "sit" with me and keep me company, drove my kids everywhere, and the list keeps going. So again, I know the study says 01876 is less generous with their wallets, but I cannot imagine any other community being more generous than ours with their hearts.

Charity starts at home in this case , mine ! Probably because we have been bled to death with fees and taxes in this town ! Worst charity to give to is United Way . Very high pressure sales pitch to give to their organization . I gave once and will never do it again .

That data is from 2008, but that is the year that all this major trouble w/the economy really hit. Chances are we're not as generous today as we were in 2008!

My understanding has been the The United Way is the best charity to give to because they supply other charities, and all.

We all give to the townie unfunded pension plan yearly..now who you calling stingy!
and they're getting the chapter 90 funding as well! and the water enterprise fund too!
How much do those folks give?