Fundraising.

[sunshine-kt]

Anyone got any good ideas for fundraising, apart from the obvious usuals (carwashes, carboots, raffles, quiz nights) or any ways to get money quickly? Me and a group at school are off to Ecuador next July for 3 weeks, so we need to find lots of ways to get more money. I'm 15, 16 in October, and need a part time job >.< Should I just ask loads of shops and Hairdressers (avoiding any waitressing and washing up jobs). Thanks guys :]

[sense4all]

The kids at my daughters school raise funds by organising Discos for all the same year groups from a couple of senoir schools in the same local hall for a few weeks.They cover expenses ( hall hire and DJ ) from the ticket sales and then make profit from the drinks and snacks they sell. So for example the first weeks the year sevens ,second week year eight and so on!

[horsestache1]

Aproach your local radio station, and tell them what you are doing, you may get donations this way.

Go through the Yellow Pages, write to local busineses, asking for donations.

[mickeymiller]

First of all, congrats on getting your fundraising started! Raising support for a worthy cause can be super rewarding.

One route you might want to consider is setting up a homepage for your group on a fundraising website.

Raising support online is much simpler and more tidy than raising funds via cash or check (most sites can link donations straight to your bank account through a merchant processor). And having a group page gives you a central place to post information, photos and let people know what you do - this helps you promote your cause to friends, family and whoever else you want.

There are plenty of sites these days that help groups meet their goals - here are some good options:

First Giving (www.firstgiving.com) is a solid one. They charge about 5% on donations raised and have a simple structure to set up your page (though you may have to be a certified non-profit to register with them).

If that's the case, another option is Empowered (www.empowered.org). They process about 3.5% on donations raised, offer lots of tools to help organize/fundraise, and I know they support all small groups, regardless of non-profit status.

And you could always try to send up your own PayPal account to link to you directly, but this is a little trickier and a bit inflexible.

Good luck getting your fundraising going, I hope this helps!