Fundraising thoughts and ideas please

[kc10family]

My child wants to do a fundraiser so she can attend an event that I can’t pay for. The group she is going with is not doing a fundraiser (don’t get me started). DD thinks chocolate bars would sell but doesn’t know where to sell them at. Our neighborhood does not allow door to door so that is out.
Ideas? Would you sell the candy bars? If so where?
Thank you

 

[mickeyboat]

No, I would not sell candy bars.

How old is your DD? How much does she need to raise? I would advise my kids to try to do jobs around the house and around the neighborhood to raise money. Someone always needs a cat / dog / babysitter. Does your DD have any savings of her own? Does she have a birthday coming up where she could ask for contributions for her trip from family instead of gifts?

Another idea would be to collect returnable cans and bottles for refunds (if your state participates). How about a yard sale where she could sell some of the things she no longer needs? Finally, when DDs were smaller, I offered to pay them the value of any coupons they clipped for me to use when we were shopping. They earned quite a bit of money that way, especially when we shopped at stores that doubled coupons.

 

[LJSquishy]

How much money does she need to raise and how old is she?

You can't just randomly sell candy or other goods somewhere...you have to have permission from businesses and possibly even some type of permit. The only place you could get away with it is at your church if you go to one.

How about having her sort through outgrown clothing, toys, etc and listing them on Ebay or Craigslist? What about asking family friends and relatives to hire her for cleaning, yard work, etc? Babysitting (if old enough)? Aside from small odd-jobs and selling items on Craigslist, there aren't many options for a child unfortunately.

You may need to teach her that even when she would like to contribute financially, sometimes it still isn't enough and we can't always make everything happen. Sometimes she will just have to miss out.

Growing up we never attended things like camp, participated in sports that required big purchases, etc like many of my friends. There is no way my parents could have afforded all of that and there is nothing wrong with not being able to.

 

[okeydokey]

It would be very difficult to sell candy or sell anything on your own as an unofficial fundraiser. Most stores will not let an individual sell outside their store for a trip or activity for themselves.

Maybe she can make flyers to distribute to babysit or wash cars or something.

 

[soccerdad72]

I suppose you could go somewhere like here:

http://www.*************/

Or, maybe not.

There's websites for fundraising out there -- Google them.

 

[luvsJack]

I have never sold anything like that outside of an organized group but have seen a few people do things like bake sales or selling hamburger/hotdog plates and even lemonade stands outside of Walmart. Usually it will be one or two from a group that is traveling and the group itself isn't fund raising.

Sam's does sell boxes of candy that are made for candy sales. And Walmart does allow people to sell things in front of the store, you just have to ask and they schedule a time.

But, I don't think any of that is going to make enough money on its own. Could she offer her services as raking leaves, cutting yards, shoveling snow (whatever is needed right now in your area?)? Or she could be a mother's helper and charge $X an hour to help out in the house with a sahm and clean or entertain a little one. Or she could even wash cars. Maybe folks you know would be willing to let her do a service like that and they donate to the cause?

Can you talk to other parents in this organization about doing some things together?

 

[wdwmom0f3]

Tell her to clean her closet out and list those items for sale on a Facebook yard sale page in your area.

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

You need to find out what your town/state ordinance is re: fundraising.

She should set up a babysitting and or lawn work. I would not do a fund-raiser at all. If she doesn't make enough from her hard work, she will realize how hard it is to fund extras in your life.

 

[kc10family]

Thank you for the replies, DD is a tween so she can do many of the great suggestions here. It’s always good to get other opinions and out of tunnel vision. We do not pay our children for doing things around the house because we all live in it and are responsible for the upkeep etc but I do understand the lesson learned in it.

 

[ronandannette]

Thank you for the replies, DD is a tween so she can do many of the great suggestions here. It’s always good to get other opinions and out of tunnel vision. We do not pay our children for doing things around the house because we all live in it and are responsible for the upkeep etc but I do understand the lesson learned in it.

Based on your OP, I think you're saying that you don't have the budget to pay for her trip, not that you wouldn't be willing to help her achieve the goal, right? If so, I really like the ideas PP's have given you about helping her find friends and family that might be willing to pay her for odd jobs. It would be a pretty big task to expect her to "prospect" her own business unless she was very mature and exceptionally motivated. The e-bay idea, or a garage sale of her own possessions (and maybe household stuff you're willing to chip in) are good too. You didn't mention how much money she needs and in what time frame. I'm curious about how high this hurdle is. Good luck to her.

 

[jdb in AZ]

Some friends of ours collected cardboard from construction sites. (Getting permission from the contractor would be necessary.) They made good $$$ from recycling the cardboard.

 

[JVL1018]

My kids' 5th grade class sold candy bars to fundraise. I just sent them to work and the firehouse with my husband and sold each box and 2 extras each year.

But there was one kid who sold like 6 boxes because he just walked around the Little League field and parents and kids watching the games snapped them up.
You don't need permission(at least we didn't) and he stayed away from the field that has the snack stand.

 

[kc10family]

Based on your OP, I think you're saying that you don't have the budget to pay for her trip, not that you wouldn't be willing to help her achieve the goal, right? If so, I really like the ideas PP's have given you about helping her find friends and family that might be willing to pay her for odd jobs. It would be a pretty big task to expect her to "prospect" her own business unless she was very mature and exceptionally motivated. The e-bay idea, or a garage sale of her own possessions (and maybe household stuff you're willing to chip in) are good too. You didn't mention how much money she needs and in what time frame. I'm curious about how high this hurdle is. Good luck to her.

No, I don't have the budget to pay for her trip at this time ($1200 paid by September). I know we can change some spending and budget better but I still won’t have enough at the time the money is due. If spring ever gets here, she should be able to do odds and ends around the area and we are sooooo having a yard sale. We may even toss in a little bake sale in that yard sale. Thank you.

Some friends of ours collected cardboard from construction sites. (Getting permission from the contractor would be necessary.) They made good $$$ from recycling the cardboard.

Cardboard? Interesting, I will be looking up the recycling places and rules.

My kids' 5th grade class sold candy bars to fundraise. I just sent them to work and the firehouse with my husband and sold each box and 2 extras each year.

But there was one kid who sold like 6 boxes because he just walked around the Little League field and parents and kids watching the games snapped them up.
You don't need permission(at least we didn't) and he stayed away from the field that has the snack stand.

Candy sales are not allowed at the work place. I love the baseball field idea… time to find all the different field schedules in the town.

 

[akcire]

I would have her advertise as a summer "mother's helper". Typically these are teens too young to drive who assist new moms or moms of many by playing and keeping the child busy while mom can do things. Typically mom remains in or very near to the home.

A common schedule for a mother's helper may be 15 hours a week 3 days per week 5 hours a day and pay approximately $100 a week.

If she could get such a job on top of the other ideas she would be golden.

If you lived in my area I'd invite her over to do a spring clean up of my yard. I am sure there are other busy professionals or old folks who would pay for that service too.

As a young teen, I was the babysitting queen. Literally riding my bike to 3 house on Saturdays for the various jobs I had booked. Not to mention any Friday "date" nights I worked.

 

[beavismom]

A friend's daughter funded a big chunk of her People to People trip by asking neighbors, friends and family to save their aluminum cans for her.

 

[Disney Doll]

Lots of good ideas here for a kid willing to work. If a neighborhood kid came to me wanting to take my aluminum cans, I'd gladly give them to her. I hate recycling cans. I do it because it's the right thing to do for the environment, but I always hate that sticky grungy feeling I have afterwards. Bleah!

She would probably make out pretty well doing a combination of these fundraising activities. There's more than one way to skin a cat!

I could see her making some money doing cans, some doing a tag sale, some doing the candy bar sale at local little league games etc. You never know...one may turn into a business and she could become a young entrepreneur!!

 

[elphaba91]

We had to do the chocolate bar sales every year for school. It was really a pain when there were 4 families from the one school in the same street. However, we did really well the year we moved in - the majority of houses in the street were still being built and the construction workers were very eager to buy our chocolate. It was a bit scary when they threw coins at us from the second story of a building though! We also did well the year I was at a different school to my sister and was able to sell her chocolates at my school during exams. I guess what I'm saying is, try to really think about your market and work out who would actually want to by candy at inflated prices.

I know you said you don't pay your kids for doing chores, but are there any big jobs that nobody wants to do that you might be willing to pay for? Things that go beyond doing the dishes or the vacuuming, like cleaning all the silverware or cleaning out the garage? Those are jobs she could offer to do off others too.

The other idea would be to see if there are any jobs, like delivering pamphlets, that she might be eligible for.

 

[scrapquitler]

But, I don't think any of that is going to make enough money on its own. Could she offer her services as raking leaves, cutting yards, shoveling snow (whatever is needed right now in your area?)? Or she could be a mother's helper and charge $X an hour to help out in the house with a sahm and clean or entertain a little one. Or she could even wash cars. Maybe folks you know would be willing to let her do a service like that and they donate to the cause?

I like these ideas. I think it's great to nuture that entrepreneurial spirit and show her that she can DO something and get a financial reward for it.

Maybe she can walk dogs, or if you have a bottle deposit law in your state, perhaps she can collect bottles and cans from your family/friends and return the bottles and keep the money. I actually paid for my portion of a Girl Scout trip to Washington DC in the 8th grade by collecting and redeeming 5 cent deposits on the cans and bottles from everyone in my family for about 6 months.

One other idea, depending on the time frame, if she has a birthday or if there is a holiday where she might get gifts from family members or grandparents, perhaps she can request that they give her a monetary gift with the intention of using it to pay for the trip/activity. I know that I did this when I was a child on several occasions because unless I did, or found a way to raise money by doing extra chores or odd jobs, I wouldn't have had spending money.

 

[scrapquitler]

No, I don't have the budget to pay for her trip at this time ($1200 paid by September). I know we can change some spending and budget better but I still won’t have enough at the time the money is due. If spring ever gets here, she should be able to do odds and ends around the area and we are sooooo having a yard sale. We may even toss in a little bake sale in that yard sale. Thank you.

Reading this makes me think that maybe you can kick in some of the cost for this trip but not all of it? You might make some sort of deal with her that you will supplement what she does...it might be a good motivation for her and keep her from getting too discouraged. Maybe you tell her that for every $50 she can raise, you will match it (or adjust that to whatever level you are comfortable with and that works for your budget, even if you can only add in a small amount).

 

[LisaInNc]

I don't know if this will work for your situation but this was my favorite fundraiser.

Where my husband works they had a person that had an accident and was having a difficult time so they did a fundraiser to help her out.

They did a big lunch for everyone once a week. Different people volunteered to make a particular part. Entree, salad, drinks, paper goods. Everyone "bought" their lunch there rather than going out.

It worked well. The people that usually ran out to buy their lunch got to slow down, eat with their co workers. Do something good for someone else rather than give more money to fast food.

Everyone helped and it was a great experience.

I hope your daughter can meet her goal.

Lisa