FUNDRAISING IDEAS FROM A-Z
Just about any idea can be turned into a money-raising event, and this A-Z list can help get your creativity flowing. Gather up a team of passionate Thankful Thinking supporters, or go it alone. Just a little money raised can go a long way toward helping children around the world have a better future. Now, get out there and make a difference!
A
Art Sales: Use artwork from preschool and elementary school students and have a “gallery sale” for parents to buy back their budding artists’ masterpieces.
Ask: The easiest way to raise money is to ask! Talk to your friends and family, and explain your commitment to helping children around the world have a better life.
Auction: Put together a live or silent auction. Do it yourself, or have an auctioneer donate his or her time.
B
Bake Sale: Hold a healthy treats bake sale at work or
at a busy spot around town — like your local bank or supermarket. Or have a “no-bake” sale where co-workers pay so they don’t have to bake goodies.
Balloon Day: Great for students! Sell balloons with a message attached for $2 each. The students take orders
in advance and then deliver the balloon messages at a later date.
Birthday Party With a Purpose: On the invitation, ask for guests to donate to Thankful Thinking in lieu of gifts.
Block Party: Put together a block party in a parking lot or neighborhood street. Ask a band or DJ to donate a few hours, and have a BBQ, face-painting, hay rides and games.
Book Sales: Collect used books from friends and family, and have a book sale during lunch hours at the office.
Boss for the Day: Allow people to bid on being boss for the day. The highest bid wins!
Bowl-a-thon: Take a cue from some of our student teams — hold a bowl-a-thon and ask for pledges for every pin knocked down.
Breakfast: Put together a breakfast with Santa, the Easter Bunny or another favorite kids’ character. Work with a local restaurant, or organize it at a hall or club. Sell tickets to the event, and have a team member dress up in costume.
Brown-Bag Lunch Day: Everyone brings in their own lunch and donates the money they would have spent on food to Use a clear collection jar to inspire topping the jar off.
C
Candle Sale: Sell scented candles to fellow employees and friends.
Candy Bar Sale: Sell candy bars at work, or ask a local business to let you set up a display box. You can purchase box kits from wholesale warehouses such as Sam’s, or ask a candy store to donate them.
Car Wash: This is another good idea for students. Try saying “donations accepted” instead of charging a set price (people tend to give more).
Chili Cook-Off: Have a hot-hot-hot chili cook-off — another great idea for the office.
Coin Drive: This is especially good for students to do at schools. Have them collect change in the lunchroom. Set up a coin jar at the beginning of the school year and see how the money grows.
Coin Toss: Get permission from the local mall to collect all the coins tossed into the fountain for a designated time period. Be sure to have signs stating that the coins will be donated to Thankful Thinking.
Comedy Club: Ask a local comedy club to host an evening in support of Thankful Thinking, and invite your co-workers and friends.
Concession Stand: Set up a concession stand or booth at a community event during the year.
Cookbook: Collect recipes from employees and have them published. These can be produced for as little as $2 each, and sold for $7-$8. Use a theme, like healthy foods, or recipes from around the world.
Craft Fair: Set up a table at a craft fair or festival.
Crafts: During the holidays, craft tree ornaments, stockings or decorations, and sell them.
D
Dime Water Bottle: A 16-ounce water bottle filled with dimes is $100. Place the bottles around your community. Stick a Thankful Thinking sticker on them to explain where the money will go.
Dog Sit: While the owners are on vacation, charge a small fee and save them the cost of sending Fido to the kennel.
Dog Walk: Walk the neighborhood dogs for donations.
Drawing for Day of Cleaning: Donate three hours of your time to spring/fall house-clean someone’s home. Sell tickets for $15 each for a chance to win your services.
Dream Bike: Host a party, borrow a bike and ask people to guess how much the bike cost. Explain that we can provide a bike to a student for only $100. Challenge friends to donate enough money to buy several bikes.
Dress-Down Day: Ask your HR department to allow
employees to dress down on a work day if they give a donation to Thankful Thinking. This could also work at parochial or private schools where students are required to wear a uniform.
E
Email: Email your friends, family and associates for donations.
Event Parking: Check with local fairgrounds or venues and ask if they can hire nonprofit volunteers to help park cars, with the proceeds going to ChildFund.
F
Fashion Show: Organize a fashion show with contestants of different nationalities dressing in their traditional attire.
Fifty/Fifty Drawing: Everyone loves the chance to win cash. Hold a 50/50 raffle!
Flower Bouquet Drawing: Ask a local florist to donate one bouquet of flowers each month for three months (or go to three different florists and get one per shop). Sell tickets for $5.
G
Game Night: Invite friends to your house to play board games, charades, etc., much like Party With a Purpose. Charge an “entrance” fee.
H
Hat Day: This is good for schools. Coordinate with administrators so that, for a specified donation amount, students can wear hats for the day.
Go Door to Door: Canvas your neighborhood asking for donations. Work as a team and canvas the town.
Golf Tournament: Have your team put together a golf tournament with the proceeds benefiting Thankful Thinking
Horse Show: Charge an entrance fee to attend, with the proceeds going to Thankful Thinking
I
Ice Cream Socials: Offer ice cream, low-fat yogurt and other frozen treats for dessert at your workplace. Ask for a small donation to attend.
Jail & Bail: Each employee who participates has a bounty placed on his or her head. When they are “arrested” by another co-worker, they must raise $100 to be “released.” Assign roles around the workplace, such as bounty-hunter, sheriff, bailiff, and so on.
J
Jewelry Sale: Work with a wholesale company to sell jewelry or collect old jewelry from friends and family, have a jeweler clean it up, then have a sale.
K
Kiss a Goat/Pig Contest: Recruit a local celebrity to kiss a goat when a certain amount of money has been raised. Or keep it in the workplace and give each employee a jar with his or her face on it. Whoever raises the most money must kiss a goat or pig.
L
Lawn Service: Mow someone’s lawn for a donation.
Letter Writing: A great way to ask for donations without asking in person. Send letters out to your friends and family explaining what you’re doing, and ask for a specific amount. Add some humor and write the letter from your pet’s or baby’s point of view. Mention how great it is to receive a letter from a child overseas, and maybe you can initiate a new sponsorship!
M
Matching Gift: Ask your company to match what you raise. Some companies have a matching gift policy, so check to see if yours does. If they don’t, ask them anyway.
Money Jar: Set up money jars or coin boxes at your place
of work, your local banks, restaurants, hairdressers or stores. Check back frequently to empty them.
Movie Night: Invite your friends over for a night at the movies. Provide the popcorn and soda, and charge admission. Or show a movie during lunch hour at work. Charge admission and invite employees to eat their lunch while they watch.
N
Non-alcoholic Cocktail Party: Have a non-alcoholic cocktail party at your home and ask for donations. Or have a moving one at work. Each department has different appetizers and drinks available, and people go from office to office. Be sure to have donation jars next to the refreshments.
O
Odd Job: Call on your neighbors and offer to do some odd jobs, such as fixing a rain gutter, shoveling a driveway, painting a fence or raking leaves.
P
Pancake Breakfast: Hold a pancake breakfast at a hall, church or at your workplace. Ask for donations, or charge a small fee.
Parking Space Auction: College students can auction off the president’s parking spot, or company employees can auction off a prime spot.
Payroll Deduction: Encourage co-workers or employees to have donations to ChildFund deducted directly from their paychecks. A little each week can grow into a large amount.
Percentage of Sales: Own a small business? Designate
a percentage of one day’s sales or proceeds to ChildFund, and let the public know so they will buy more.
Personal Bake Sale: Bake some delicious treats and sell them for a few dollars apiece. Don’t forget to make some healthy treats such as fruit salad with low-fat yogurt and granola. Or make
a different dessert each week to sell to your co-workers.
Pet Fashion Show: Have a pet fashion show. Charge admission and vote for best outfit, matching outfits (owner and pet), wildest outfit, etc.
Q
Questions for a Buck: Raise money by having your boss charge $1 for each question asked by employees. Watch as word spreads throughout the company and employees start asking questions and paying up!
Open House: Ask your fitness center to hold an open house with a variety of classes offered throughout the day. See if they will also include babysitting, and ask attendees for donations!
Photo: Have your photo taken with a local celebrity for a specified donation, or use a realistic cardboard stand-in and have your co-workers pay to have their photo taken with the “celebrity.” Do this at work or in conjunction with a local fair or festival.
Pie Sale: Much like a bake sale, this is especially popular around the holidays. Take orders, or set up a table at a busy grocery store or shopping center.
Pizza Sale: Work with a pizzeria to sell pizzas, and have them give you a percentage of the sales. Take orders and deliver them. You can also put pizza kits together yourself, or work with a wholesaler to get pizzas at a reduced price or donated.
Plant Sale: As in the flower sale, work with local florists or wholesalers and sell potted plants.
Potluck Lunch: Designate one day of the month as ChildFund Potluck Day, where co-workers take turns making chili, casseroles, salads and desserts, and offer them to employees at a set price or donation.
Quilt Drawing: Make a quilt to be given away. Ask a seamstress you know to hold a quilting class one evening. Make a night out of it and ask for donations. The class can even make the quilt for your fundraising drawing.
Quoits Tournament: Hold a quoits or horseshoe tournament. Roll Those Pennies: Roll those pennies sitting in a jar on your dresser. While you’re at it, roll the rest of the loose
change you have been collecting, and use it to help children.
R
Roll Those Pennies: Roll those pennies sitting in a jar on your dresser. While you’re at it, roll the rest of the loose
change you have been collecting, and use it to help children.
S
Shoe Auction: Have a competition to decorate TOMS shoes and auction them off to the highest bidder (TOMS donates thousands of shoes to ChildFund every year).
Sell Employee Services: Find the best gourmet chef in your office to agree to go to someone’s home and prepare a meal
(for a donation of course). Get your VP to commit to washing an employee’s car, or several. Have the company photographer take a family photo for a certain amount.
Silent Auction: Have a silent auction using items you’ve had donated by area businesses (goods, services, gift certificates) or new items from family or team members.
Soup Sale: Especially during the cold winter months, take orders from your co-workers, and have a soup sale at work. Expand your reach, and offer it to other offices throughout the community. Take orders ahead of time, and have an evening of team soup making.
Spaghetti Dinner: Put together a spaghetti dinner at a local hall or club. School teams have also done this with the help of their parents. Students take tickets at the door, and wait and clear tables.
Sports Tournament: Have your team organize bowling, hockey, basketball, soccer, Ping-Pong or other sports tournaments.
Story Time: Have an organized story time. Hold it at your workplace where employees can bring their children, or work with your local library to have story time on a Saturday morning.
T
Tupperware Party: Have the profits from a Tupperware party benefit your team for Thankful Thinking
Turkey Drawing: Ask a grocery store to donate a certificate
for a turkey or ham to be picked up just in time for Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter.
U
UGLY Bartender Contest: Get all the bartenders in town to agree to be in your UGLY bartender contest. Charge $1 per vote, and give the winner a reward.
V
Vacation Day Award: Have your employer award a free day off to the person who raises the most money for Thankful Thinking
Video/DVD Sale: Hold a video/DVD sale at work and have each team member bring in old videos or DVDs they don’t watch anymore, especially ones their children have outgrown (great for parents).
W
Wait Tables: Work with a restaurant that will let you designate
a specific night to benefit Thankful Thinking. You and your team members
work as waiters for the evening and collect all the tips, as well as possibly a percentage of that evening’s receipts. Invite your friends and family to eat at the restaurant that night.
Wrap Presents: During holiday time (Christmas or Mother’s Day), set up a gift wrapping booth at a local mall, plaza or busy department store
X
Xylophone Concert: You never know who has a special talent. Hold a music concert or recital. Pass refreshments and ask for donations, or sell tickets in advance.
Y
Yard Sale: Work together as a team, or have one individually.
Z
Zoo: Set up a visiting zoo of stuffed animals at a day care center, and have someone explain the different animals and where
they live. Allow the kids to touch, feel and mimic the sounds the animals make. Charge a small fee to visit the “zoo.”
Zoot Suit Party: Hold a swing dance party, and charge an entrance fee. Give awards for the best zoot suit.