Stuck for Project Ideas??
Here are some suggestions for your club......
AND remember if you are trying to raise money for your club's
own account to attend conventions etc, you can hold a fund raising event and share the proceeds with the charity and your club!
USED BOOK SALE
Description: Collect used books that will sell easily and be sure to include children's books. Send out notices on campus, to your friends, family and to Kiwanis Clubs asking for donations of used books. Arrange for space to sell these books in a mall or other public, high traffic location. They will sell very quickly – everyone likes to read and loves a bargain!
To make it successful: Advertise, Advertise, Advertise! Put up posters on campus asking for used books. Send out notices through the campus paper. Get your Kiwanis advisor to put a notice in the Kiwanis newsletter. Get invited to a Kiwanis meeting to make an announcement. When you are ready to sell the books – advertise again!
Lead Time: Start planning about 6 weeks ahead. Who are you raising money for – your club, a charity? Start collecting books about a month ahead of selling.
USED CLOTHING DRIVE
Description: Collect used clothing for women and children and/or men that are in shelters. Often women and children who are forced to flee abusive situations do so without having time to collect their belongings. Men in shelters have need for clothing as well. The need is year round and especially in the winter. Call shelters in your area to ask what the need is. It is amazing to see the generosity of people.
To make it successful: Pick your drop off points. Arrange for a central drop off point on campus BUT make sure the bags of clothes are picked up regularly. Ask your Kiwanis club to donate clothes AND ensure your Kiwanis advisors are willing to pick up the clothes at their meetings. Set a time limit for this project – such as 6 weeks. Advertise. Advertise. Advertise! Ask friends, family, Kiwanis members and fellow students to rummage through their unwanted clothing and to please donate. The clothing MUST be in good condition.
Lead time: Start planning about 3 weeks ahead. Call shelters and ask what the need is. Who will do the posters and where will they go? Contact the campus paper. Once the campaign starts set a time limit on when the campaign will end.
GAME TOURNAMENT
(COULD BE POKER, CRIBBAGE ETC)
Description: Holding a game tournament can be a great way to raise money for a charity and it is fun. Charge admission for the players ($10.), sell food, snacks and have a prize for the winner and runner up. Depending on the number of players this could last all day as players are slowly whittled out of their matches. Depending on which charity you choose to support, that charity might help you with the event. There should be door prizes which can be donated and very often food will be donated for a charitable cause. Check with your local gaming commissions to ensure that your tournament is legal, as in Ontario, the OLGC has recently forbidden poker tournaments from being run without first obtaining a license.
To make it successful: Lots of planning is involved and this needs to be a collective effort from the members of the club. Judges/dealers are needed (who can be easily trained) to monitor the games – get your friends and other Kiwanis members out to do this. Secure a large enough space to accommodate players and tables – an area on campus would be ideal. Select the charity, ask if they will help. Advertise, Advertise, Advertise! See if the local media will come out to film and be there for the cheque presentation.
Lead time: This is a detailed event and the lead time should be at least 2 months to make sure everything is done properly. Plan what needs to be done and when.
50/50 DRAWS
Description: Sell numbered tickets (ie: 1 ticket for $2.00 or 3 tickets for $5.00) and the winner of the draw wins 50 % of the total amount collected and your club keeps the other half. Sell these tickets at a sporting or dinner event.
To make it successful: Look for an appropriate event where there will be a lot of people and contact the organizers to ask permission to sell the tickets. Buy tickets at an office supply store or possibly at a dollar store. Better yet, try to get a permanent spot at a sporting event like junior or campus hockey games.
Lead time: Contact organizers well ahead of the event to make sure your club is the club to get permission. Lead time to buy tickets and organize members to sell at the event takes about one to two weeks.
SERVING MEALS FOR THE HOMELESS
Description: Soup kitchens and homeless shelters are almost always in need of volunteers. Whether it’s cooking, serving meals, or doing prep work, there’s always something to be done. Contact local shelters and arrange a day when the club can send a group of members on a rotating schedule.
To make it successful: Make sure the work needed will be enjoyable for members. Different organizations need or allow volunteers to do different tasks, so make sure you know what responsibilities will be asked of you.
Lead time: Contact the volunteer coordinators of the kitchen/shelter(s) of choice as early as possible. Double check that they do not require any background checks, and how many volunteers they can accommodate. Create a schedule at least 2 weeks ahead of time to ensure that all time slots are filled.
BBQ
Description: Hold a Barbeque on campus, outside of a local business/grocery store/etc. to raise money for a local charity and/or your club. Sell hamburgers, hotdogs, drinks and have a donation jar in a visible location.
To make it successful: Choose a date when a lot of people are expected to be in the area, such as a major sale at a local business, or an important campus event. Contact the appropriate authorities/organizers for permission to set up a BBQ, and seek out discounts or donated products to sell. Create large and attractive advertising (ie. Posters, sandwich boards, etc. to attract attention to your BBQ).
Lead time: Contact the business/authorities well ahead of time to ensure you are the club given permission. Begin seeking out donation and discounts on food two weeks to a month ahead of time. Ensure that stock will be available for pick up the day of the BBQ at least a week ahead of time.
BOOKS ON TAPE
Description: Purchase or have children’s books donated and have members record them on cassette tapes. Donate these tapes to local schools, children’s hospitals, churches and any other organizations that can use them to promote literacy.
To make it successful: Have fun with this! Getting multiple members together to “play” different characters in unique voices can be highly entertaining and fun for all involved. Let your creativity loose!
Lead time: This project can be done on short notice. As long as you have a tape recorder, a book and one or more member(s) you’ve got what you need! Contact the organization/group/individuals who you wish to donate the books and tapes to ahead of time to arrange a convenient drop off location and time.
TRICK OR EAT
Description: Too old to go Trick or Treating? Consider getting dressed up in your costumes and going door to door collecting non-perishable food items and/or monetary donations for the local food bank.
To make it successful: Create a short flier to distribute to houses you intend to visit, letting them know you’ll be coming to collect donations. It doesn’t have to be fancy, and can be the size of a bookmark, allowing you to print about 10 ads per page.
Lead time: Distribute flyers one or two days prior to Halloween to ensure that the fliers aren’t forgotten, but still allowing homeowners to go purchase food to donate, or to go through their cupboards ahead of time.
READING TO CHILDREN
Description: This involves reading to senior kindergarten children in their school environment on a one-on-one basis. Or your club may make an arrangement for a story hour at a local library. The purpose is to promote literacy in young children, to promote an interest in books and reading.
To make it successful: Find out if a literacy program exists in your community or if your sponsoring Kiwanis Club is conducting such a program. Your club may be able to piggyback on existing initiatives. Or choose a school in the campus area and contact the Principal or the local library and pitch your idea. This must be a commitment from members of your club to read on a regular basis. Perhaps pick one or two days a week at the school or one day at the library and set up a schedule for your members to read.
Lead time: School policy often requires police checks to be made and this can take some time. Contact with the school should be made in early September for the program to start in October. There is often a fee charged for a police check but as a volunteer the charge can be waived with an accompanying letter – this depends on where your club is located.
HELP SANTA TOY PARADE
Description: This fun activity usually involves setting up and taking down barricades along the parade route, providing security to make sure children do not get too close to the floats and essentially doing whatever is asked of you from the organizers (usually the local Firefighters Association). Perhaps you will be collecting some of the donated gifts as well!
To make it successful: Dress warmly! Show up on time!
Lead time: Contact the Firefighters Association in September to ask if your club can volunteer to help.
GARAGE SALE
Description: This can be a big fund raising event. Everyone has 'stuff' they want to get rid of and a garage sale is a great way to make some money with very little cost. Anything is up for grabs- books, toys, dishes, clothes, furniture – you name it. Spring and fall are the most popular times for garage sales but the summer works too!
To make it successful: Advertising is absolutely the key! You need to get the word out that you are looking for items to sell. The best bet is to set up pick-up dates and offer to pick up the items and have a place to put them until the big day. Make it easy for people to give you their items. Spread the word!! Then a huge advertising campaign is needed to promote SALE DAY! Sort through the items and put books together, toys together etc. If there are electrical items make sure there is a plug nearby so people can test if the appliance works. Have lots of plastic bags on hand so buyers can take away their purchases. Be ready to barter on prices – thats what garage sales are all about. Be sure to have lots of change in a variety of coins and bills. Someone should be responsible to collect and safeguard the money. Plan on what you will do with left over items.
Lead time: Planning and organizing a garage sale requires a lot of lead time and the larger the event the longer the lead time. Decide on how big you want the sale to be and then decide on where you want to hold it. Decide on the date and secure the location. Allow 6-8 weeks to collect the items so your club must start advertising about 10 days-2 weeks before that and continue advertising. You need time to sort through the items, price them, set up and advertise when the sale will be. Based on the above considerations, planning should start 3 - 4 weeks before the initial advertising starts for donations to the garage sale.
HUGS FOR HOPE
Description: Send a sick child a hug through a card that you make.You can even make the cards during a meeting. Kids will be in hospitals over Christmas, Valentine's and Easter - all the fun days and they know they are missing out. A simple card with a hug and a heart inside to let them know someone cares will brighten their day.
To make it successful: All you need is some imagination and a trip to the dollar store to buy some supplies.
Lead time: You can figure that one out!
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