Join Hands Day is a holiday observed on the first Saturday in May. It is a day when people are encouraged to come together and help tackle problems. However, it is more than just a day for volunteering; it is also a day when young people and adults should come together to provide support to one another.

The History of Join Hands Day

This holiday was created in 2000 by America’s Fraternal Benefit Societies and the Points of Light Foundation. They came together to create this holiday to encourage young people and adults to work together as volunteers. For the first couple of years, organizations were asked to register their Join Hands Day projects through the official website.

During some years, certain groups were given a cash award for the beneficiary of their project or for another cause. A physical award was also given, as well as recognition at the National Fraternal Congress of America Conference.

Facts About Volunteering

Since the focus of Join Hands Day is on volunteer work, we thought we would gather some interesting facts about volunteering. Below are some facts that we have come across and that we think will prove interesting to everyone.

• Approximately 96% of volunteers surveyed believe volunteering makes them happier.
• The age group most likely to volunteer is between the ages of 34 and 54.
• Volunteers are twice as likely to donate to charity as people who do not volunteer.
• People who volunteer have over a 25% better chance of finding employment.
• Approximately 22% of all volunteers are under the age of 24.
• About 4% of college graduates over the age of 25 volunteer every year.
• Approximately 71% of volunteers work with just one organization.
• Most human resource executives agree that contributing to a nonprofit can improve an employee’s leadership abilities.
• In the U.S., there are over 1.8 million active nonprofit organizations.
• Preparing and distributing food was the most reported volunteer activity in 2015.
• Volunteering can help people stay active in retirement.
• Volunteering can fill the empty spaces on a resume.
• Volunteering can improve a person’s social skills.
• Volunteering can help people make new friends.
• It has been estimated that there are over 1 billion people volunteering in the world.
• The efforts of volunteers in the world are equal to about 110 million full-time workers.
• Only about a third of volunteers in the world work through organizations.
• The percentage of Americans who volunteer regularly is on the decline.

Observing Join Hands Day

Anyone who wants to participate in this holiday can do so by organizing an event near them that allows younger and older generations to volunteer together. Of course, people do not have to organize an event to observe this holiday but can do so simply by volunteering on their own. People observing this holiday can also support the groups doing volunteer work or promote the holiday using the hashtag #JoinHandsDay.