Enough fundraisers!!!

[Minnie's Friend]

I feel the pain. I have a 1st grader and a 20 month old in daycare. On my desk right now--

1st grader--Entertainment book--$20 each
Wrapping paper/knick knack book

Daycare -- Bag tag/note cards
Kroger Gift Cards as they get percentage of what you spend
Scholastic book order form

And both had t-shirts for sale. Bought 1st grader one as it is different design and she can wear them on Friday instead of uniform colors. Didn't order younger daughter one as she can still wear the one I bought last year that was too big.

Last year we got Entertainment book at meet the teacher night. Turned it in and 2 days later got the wrapping paper. This year they waited till the 2nd week of school and sent both home on the same day.

If it goes like last year just for the 1st grader we will also be asked for money for Jump-a-thon, Walk-a-thon for Heart Association as well as one benefiting her school, cookie dough, and magazines. For a public school you would think they wouldn't need as much money given the PTO also does a Fall Carnival and then at Christmas time a silent auction where each class makes up baskets for the auction. Participation is so low I don't know why they don't try just asking for cash donations and see if that is better than fundraising.

Younger daughter will just have a bake sale and then a fundraising dinner/auction in the Spring.

I try not to ask as some many that I know are also selling the stuff including family members here. Plus now that DD is in Brownies we will have Girl Scout cookies to sale as well.

 

[irish dancer]

I hear you!! We have 3 kids, the two girls go to Catholic school and ds is special ed so he goes to public school.

The girls school is having a walk-a-thon (last year a bowl-a-thon) to raise money for smart boards.

DS brought home the wrapping paper stuff the first week of school . What I find totally funny, and this has happened the past two years, the girl across the street (4th grade now) rings my doorbell to see if I want to buy wrapping paper from school . She knows DS goes to public school too . If you are going to allow your child to go selling door to door unaccompanied wouldn't you at least tell her to skip houses with kids in school as they're selling the same stuff?!


I can distinctly remember growing up my mother HATED any type of fundraiser with the exception of Girl Scout cookies. She would always ask "how much to I have to pay to not sell anything" . She is still the same way, anytime the kids have a fundraiser she'll make a flat donation and doesn't want any of "that junk".

Thankfully the other extracurricular activities the kids are in don't require fundraisers with the exception of GS cookies and I'm OK with those .

 

[mjantz]

The Entertainment books are actually one of my favorite fundraisers because they have a website which means family out of state can order them for their area & I don't have to ship it anywhere. I will also buy from the book fair every year. Both of my kids get a book & I donate either a book from the teachers wishlist or a gift certificate towards books on their wishlist.

What I hate are the sports fundraisers (I've only seen sports teams do this but I'm sure other organizations could do the same) where they're not even selling anything. They're just standing outside Wal-Mart or wherever with signs saying 'We're going to [insert tournament in another state here]! Please help!'. My DD does ballet & I've often joked that I should stand her outside our local grocery store with a jar & a sign saying 'Please help me go to a Summer Intensive in NYC' or 'Help keep me in pointe shoes!'.

I also can't be the only one who finds it a contradiction that the school will tell you that unless your kid is at deaths door they need to be in school every day & that the state achievement test is so important that no excuse is valid, yet they will take 2 hours to have a 'Fundraising Pep Rally' to get your kids to sell crap.

 

[christa112]

I also agree!!!! I do not participate in the fundraisers that sell candles or wrapping paper etc. I have 2 kids in the same school which means my friends and family would have to spend money two times for each of my boys, because of course they want to win the "fantastic prizes" LOL, so I just throw those away, I do sell the raffles tickets or buy raffle tickets when attending school functions to help them raise money that way.

 

[DjdBrit]

seriously my daughter has only been in school for 6 full days and my son only for 1, and we have already had 3 fundraisers sent home with them. really now, do we really need to send fundraisers home on the first day of school?
its just so aggrevating because of course they offer those crappy prizes so the kids want to do them. but i just cant. i cant keep asking people to buy things. i wont.
we've thrown them all away so far.

dont get me wrong, im all for the event fundraisers. have a bake sale, not only will i bake, but ill come down and buy. have a fair, we'll come down and spend $50 on games and what not.
but stop asking me to ask my friends to buy crap!!! i wont do it!!!

i cant be the only mom who is just fed up with it!!!

I see you live south of Boston... as do I, I am annoyed already with this too. I wonder if our kids are at he same school!!!

 

[imthatgirl]

I see you live south of Boston... as do I, I am annoyed already with this too. I wonder if our kids are at he same school!!!

ha ha...could be. im pretty south. about an hour.

 

[imthatgirl]

what!? day cares do fundraisers?? my kids have never gone to day care, but im shocked that they have fund raisers. dont you pay a crazy high weekly fee to send your kids there. oh i would laugh right in their face. kinda like my sons preschool. its not cheap to send him there and he only goes 2 days for 2 1/2 hours. they can bite me if they think im doing a fundraiser, and yes they have sent them home.

now the entertainment books i dont mind. at least with those there are people that actually want to buy them. so i just send out an email that i have them and then they can come to me. like the girl scout cookies, i dont have to sell those, they sell themselves. but there is no one out there that is looking for over priced wrapping paper

 

[McKelly]

I am also one that hates fundraisers, but do it, because I know what it helps purchase for the school and allows for the students in which the school budget does not allow anymore. I am sure I am not alone when I say that our school is having a more and more difficult time meeting it's needs with what is offered by the government. I like that my kids are able to go on field trips and have experience with all of the new technology that is out there, that parent's fundraising allows for the school to purchase.

Having said that, if I don't want to sell, I just send in a cash donation, which is always welcome, instead of selling. However, I have talked to many people at school, that do NOT want to just send in money, they WANT something for their money. So, for as many of us who hate to sell, there are just as many who will NOT just send in money, but find it more satisfying to having something tangible for their dollars. I wish our school could just say, please send in XX amount of dollars, but I am afraid that would not go over so well, and we would make less money than actually doing fundraising.

 

[imthatgirl]

I am also one that hates fundraisers, but do it, because I know what it helps purchase for the school and allows for the students in which the school budget does not allow anymore. I am sure I am not alone when I say that our school is having a more and more difficult time meeting it's needs with what is offered by the government. I like that my kids are able to go on field trips and have experience with all of the new technology that is out there, that parent's fundraising allows for the school to purchase.

Having said that, if I don't want to sell, I just send in a cash donation, which is always welcome, instead of selling. However, I have talked to many people at school, that do NOT want to just send in money, they WANT something for their money. So, for as many of us who hate to sell, there are just as many who will NOT just send in money, but find it more satisfying to having something tangible for their dollars. I wish our school could just say, please send in XX amount of dollars, but I am afraid that would not go over so well, and we would make less money than actually doing fundraising.

im all about raising funds for the school. but i think the schools really need to start getting a bit more creative in how they raise these funds.
the school my daughter went to last year was very creative. they did a spring fair and raised almost $12,000 because they brought the whole city out. theres no way theyre getting that from wrapping paper sales. they also did things like ice cream socials and yard sales. these brought in hundreds of dollars.
i just think that pto's need to start putting themselves to work for the school. these fundraisers are the easy way out.
but youre right, im not writing a check to the school. i do enough of that with all the other things i need to buy.

 

[rbork]

ITA with the OP. I don't like all the fundraisers!
I do the "hassle free donation". Simply write a check to the school and deduct it from my taxes. I want to do the same for Boy and Cub scouts!

Last year I sold some pop corn to my friends at work. Bad idea- each one came to me with their fundraiser. I get it - if I buy from you - you by from me. I don't blame them at all - I simply feel pressure to buy from them as I'm sure they felt from me. ugh...

For me, it would be better to just send a check from my own pocket to the fundraiser and not have to buy all the other junk.

 

[luvmy3]

My 3 kids brought home their fundraising packets the first week of school. They were so excited because all they have to do is sell 175 items and they can get an ipod itouch or $250 cash. I told them that there is no way they would be able to sell taht many items, and I'm not asking anyone to buy anymore junk.
I agree the PTA needs to come up with something a bit more creative. This year I will donate my time and money to the PTA, but I will not be peddling their junk.

 

[blackforest]

what!? day cares do fundraisers?? my kids have never gone to day care, but im shocked that they have fund raisers. dont you pay a crazy high weekly fee to send your kids there. oh i would laugh right in their face. kinda like my sons preschool. its not cheap to send him there and he only goes 2 days for 2 1/2 hours. they can bite me if they think im doing a fundraiser, and yes they have sent them home.

now the entertainment books i dont mind. at least with those there are people that actually want to buy them. so i just send out an email that i have them and then they can come to me. like the girl scout cookies, i dont have to sell those, they sell themselves. but there is no one out there that is looking for over priced wrapping paper

Don't worry! My DDs' preschool that they attended, the director/teacher REFUSED to do fundrasing. I was even shocked that companies solicited these groups. She felt her prices covered what she needed, not what she felt the center "wanted", and it was a marvelous school!

 

[Tiffany_MommyOf3]

My son is in K and has 2 fundraisers right now. The Entertainment Book and the wrapping paper/crap catalog. I will buy a few things, my mom will, and I'm hitting up the in-laws only because the witch doesn't ever do anything for my child LOL - so I want dh to see what kind of cold hearted witch she is if she says no to his face LMAO. Yes, I know its wrong but the woman will spend THOUSANDS on a halloween party but can't even remember how old ds is.

 

[lisadr]

How about this one:

The principal of our school banned all fundraisers that included non-healthy snacks(the cupcake sale, the bake sale, the candy sale). I though great idea. Then the PTA came up with a fruit sale to replace the other sales. It was 10 &15 pound boxes of oranges, grapefruits, tangelos and a mixed box. SO I went and sold about 15 boxes. Then I get the letter that the fruit would be in on such and such date and I COULD PICK THEM UP SO I COULD DELIVER THEM TO MY BUYER!!! It was like being a citrus delivery man for 2 weeks. All the time hoping that the fruit wouldn't rot for the people I kept missing

I am all for helping the school-but come on!

 

[allison443]

im all about raising funds for the school. but i think the schools really need to start getting a bit more creative in how they raise these funds.
the school my daughter went to last year was very creative. they did a spring fair and raised almost $12,000 because they brought the whole city out. theres no way theyre getting that from wrapping paper sales. they also did things like ice cream socials and yard sales. these brought in hundreds of dollars.
i just think that pto's need to start putting themselves to work for the school. these fundraisers are the easy way out.
but youre right, im not writing a check to the school. i do enough of that with all the other things i need to buy.

Well, if you have these complaints, why don't you volunteer to organize one of those fundraisers, like the spring fair that brought out the whole city? That sounds like a HUGE undertaking, but go for it if that's what you want the school to do.
When you say "the ptos need to start putting themselves to work for the school, these fundraisers are the easy way out" you know the pto is made up of volunteers, right? Maybe distributing fundraising catalogs, collecting orders, tracking down payments, sorting merchandise, and distributing products are all they want to/can handle. Gee, they might have real "paying" jobs!!
I don't like the junk fundraisers, and I cannot donate my time to run an alternative fundraiser, so I send a check as my donation. I was much more involved in the school when my kids were younger, and I know that the parents who run these things are VOLUNTEERS so I am not going to complain if they do a fundraiser that is convenient for them.

 

[imthatgirl]

Well, if you have these complaints, why don't you volunteer to organize one of those fundraisers, like the spring fair that brought out the whole city? That sounds like a HUGE undertaking, but go for it if that's what you want the school to do.
When you say "the ptos need to start putting themselves to work for the school, these fundraisers are the easy way out" you know the pto is made up of volunteers, right? Maybe distributing fundraising catalogs, collecting orders, tracking down payments, sorting merchandise, and distributing products are all they want to/can handle. Gee, they might have real "paying" jobs!!
I don't like the junk fundraisers, and I cannot donate my time to run an alternative fundraiser, so I send a check as my donation. I was much more involved in the school when my kids were younger, and I know that the parents who run these things are VOLUNTEERS so I am not going to complain if they do a fundraiser that is convenient for them.

im always amazed by the level of rudeness on this forum, maybe some people are way too stressed to be on a public forum

like most of the 4th grade parents i signed up for the PTU and was not accepted. most first year parents dont get voted in. by next year after ive volunteered and gotten to know most of the other moms, i will most likely get voted in next year. i dont have the ability to make decisions for them.

 

[perkinsrose]

What do you mean --get voted in?

Never heard of it. I've heard/seen voting for the board members (president, secretary, etc.)but the Parent-Teacher groups I know of welcome everyone to be involved.

 

[Tiffany_MommyOf3]

What do you mean --get voted in?

Never heard of it. I've heard/seen voting for the board members (president, secretary, etc.)but the Parent-Teacher groups I know of welcome everyone to be involved.

Same here. My son started K and Im in the PTA

 

[luvmy3]

Well, if you have these complaints, why don't you volunteer to organize one of those fundraisers, like the spring fair that brought out the whole city? That sounds like a HUGE undertaking, but go for it if that's what you want the school to do.
When you say "the ptos need to start putting themselves to work for the school, these fundraisers are the easy way out" you know the pto is made up of volunteers, right? Maybe distributing fundraising catalogs, collecting orders, tracking down payments, sorting merchandise, and distributing products are all they want to/can handle. Gee, they might have real "paying" jobs!!
I don't like the junk fundraisers, and I cannot donate my time to run an alternative fundraiser, so I send a check as my donation. I was much more involved in the school when my kids were younger, and I know that the parents who run these things are VOLUNTEERS so I am not going to complain if they do a fundraiser that is convenient for them.

At our school, anyone can volunteer to join the PTA, but that doesn't mean everyone is in a position to make any decisions. Sometimes our suggestions fall on deaf ears. I figure by more and more parents refusing to sell the junk, it forces the PTA to look for alternative fundraising events and actually listen to the suggestions of others.

 

[imthatgirl]

What do you mean --get voted in?

Never heard of it. I've heard/seen voting for the board members (president, secretary, etc.)but the Parent-Teacher groups I know of welcome everyone to be involved.

theres too many here. so you apply and they vote in parents. most homes in our area have a stay at home parent or work at home parent and they all want to do it.
this is only my first year in middle school, but from what i hear they went to this systen about 6 years ago because it was becoming chaotic with so many parents. the elementary school had different levels of the PTU so everyone could be involved, so i was there. so now i will volunteer for all the events and next year most likely will be voted in. if not i just continue to volunteer for them.
most schools dont have that problem?