Study finds Canadians donate less than Americans, but local charity isn't so sure

KITCHENER -- A new study claims that Canadians are more like Scrooge than our neighbours to the south.

The study, done by the Fraser Institute, says that Canadian donations are at a 20-year low. It says fewer than 20 per cent of Canadians claim charitable donations on their tax returns.

That's compared to about 25 per cent of Americans claim donations on theirs.

But a local organization thinks the study may be a little off for a reason.

A manager of the Salvation Army's Kettle Drive says that many Canadians simply give more without wanting anything in return.

Last year, the local Kettle Drive raised more than $200,000.

"If you think of $214,000 and how many quarters, loonies and dollars go into this, there are a lot of people giving that aren't asking for tax receipts," manager Suzanne Guenther says.

While CTV watched on Friday, one woman, who didn't want to speak on camera, donated $50 to the drive, but didn't ask for a tax receipt.

Others dropped bills in the kettle in passing, not often stopping to donate anything.

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  Deb Dingman drops money into a red kettle as David Pringle ring his bell for the Salvation Army Red Kettle Drive, in Hampton Township, Mich., on Monday, Dec. 21, 2015. (Yfat Yossifor/The Bay City Times via AP)