Always Looking
I am always looking for a new way to raise funds. There is just something inside of me that LOVES to do this. I get bored with the same old, same old. Like today, Fortune cookies caught my eye for Valentines Day. How cute is that, right? At the moment, it’s looking quite expensive for high schoolers but I’m just getting started.
There are so many unique and creative ways to raise money. I think my least favorite, though, is through a catalog. I honestly do not like catalog fundraisers. The ones that you sell chocolates, sausages and cheeses or even the gifts — I just do not like them. I’m not saying I won’t buy from them when one of the neighborhood kids comes around with their package. But they just are not my favorites. If I have to pick from a favorite fundraising catalog, it would probably be the wrapping paper ones. I have this weird thing for wrapping paper. It’s actually something that I’ll buy when we go to England. My husband thinks I’m crazy. But it’s a weakness. I can’t pass up pretty wrapping paper.
To be honest, my favorite way to raise money is to do one or two really big fundraisers a year and try to get around constantly doing the smaller ones. I know *I* get tired of being asked for money all the time so I’m sure other people feel the same way. HOWEVER, there are times that these smaller fundraisers are a huge necessity. For example, right now, I am running this a Little Caesar’s fundraiser for Matthew’s swim team because we are very short on funds. Although his high school swim team has been around since the beginning of the high school, it is very young and small. A lot of people don’t even realize that we even have a swimming and diving team. And this is another of my missions for this year:) I’ll blog about that another time though, because it’s super important. But yes, small fundraisers help tremendously.
In about a month, we will be ending the high school swim season, however the fundraising will continue. Around April, I will begin putting together Discount Cards that we can begin selling before summer and through the summer if we choose. These have been great sellers for a lot of organizations in the area. I’ve spoken to friends of mine in other schools who say this is probably their biggest money maker. The trick to it, for us though, is to beat everyone else to it first. I know, Paul, bought one from a church group back in September(ish). Other people bought theirs from various sources around then, too. I’m thinking if I get on top of that ASAP and have them ready to go right before summer….
We have to be very careful with what we do because if someone else in the school is doing the same thing, we can not do it. Like for Valentines day, I love the thought of these Chinese Fortune cookies and to my knowledge, no one else is doing them. We can’t do chocolates, Crush drinks, lollipops/suckers or secret notes because other organizations and clubs have called dibs. If the cookies are too expensive, as I said earlier in my post, I will keep on looking until I find something that I hope will be a good seller. Sometimes you hit the jack-pot other times *wah wah waaaaahhhh* you get a stinker. But you live and learn, I guess!
One other thing I’ll also start putting together is a Sponsorship Package set. We will begin selling these at the beginning of the next school year. The goal is to have a lot of terrific sponsors in place for the beginning of the girls’ swimming and diving season beginning around October (the boys don’t start until November).
As you can see, it really never ends. Maybe next year, we’ll have enough continuous money coming in that we will not have to do the smaller fundraising. But until them, I’m still thinking!
Speak Soon!
take care,
~kat
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