So Crossroads took the proactive approach, launching food-drive competitions and campaigns, executive director Glenn Bailey said. The center collected more than 4 tons of food in July alone — more than a typical full summer's worth of donations.

"People know rent, food and gas are up, and people who need help are in more desperate situations," Bailey said, "and they're responding, because people in Utah are very generous."

TurboTax last year ranked Salt lake City No. 1 in the country for charitable giving, with an average $2,196 in annual giving.

The year before, Boston College's philanthropy center ranked Utah third in the nation in charitable giving. Half of donations here were classified as religious giving. The center noted that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the majority faith in Utah, are asked to tithe 10 percent of their income and encouraged to make other offerings.

Yet a May poll of 1,000 Christian adults nationwide found nearly half had pulled back on charitable giving because of the economic downturn. But the survey, conducted by Wilson Research Strategies for Christian ministries consultants Dunham+Company, also found that Intermountain states, including Utah, would be the among least impacted by a donations decline. The survey had a margin of error of 3.1 percent.

Despite that forecast, Bailey still has concerns.

"Economically, the impact has not been felt for more than a year at this point, especially in Utah," he said. "But I think as this downturn goes on, and deepens, you'll see a downturn in our case."

Kenny at Boston College's philanthropy center notes most people plan for their giving over time. "A down-trend like we're in isn't going to change dramatically the long-term giving that people do."

"A lot of the downturn is about people being worried," Kenny said. "But as far as the actual behavior, it's almost too early to tell."

For now, several local charities are doing well. Community Shares, a group of nonprofits that include disability to education groups, saw an 18 percent increase in sign-ups for last week's golf tournament fundraiser, Community Shares chief executive officer Lynne Brandley said.

United Way raised $11.1 million in the fiscal year that ended June 30. That's a $600,000 increase from the year before, director of marketing and communications Bryson Despain said.

The Utah Food Bank this summer received 51,781 pounds of food — 20,000 pounds-plus more than seen a year ago, spokeswoman Jessica Pugh reported. Cash and Web donations combined are $69,200, up nearly $2,300 from last year.

The American Cancer Society's western division, which includes Salt Lake City, has seen fundraising grow 6 percent compared to last year, Salt Lake office communications manager Patricia Monsoor said.

Primary Children's Medical Center this year took in an extra $29,000 in its radiothon and nearly $473,000 more in its telethon than last year, spokeswoman Bonnie Midget said.

"The majority of our donations come from hundreds of thousands of smaller gifts," Midget said. "We feel really good that so many people have been willing to keep that gift in their budget ... even in these difficult times."

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E-mail: jtcook@desnews.com