Ideas needed

[Ellen aka Snow White]

How much of a cut is this "organization" taking?

Absolutely nothing! Every penny, every dollar, every bit we raise goes straight back to my niece and nephew. They make their money in other ways.

 

[golfgal]

Absolutely nothing! Every penny, every dollar, every bit we raise goes straight back to my niece and nephew. They make their money in other ways.

Wow-but why the need to sign up with them then? I know there is probably more to it but the "organization" sounds a little scamish.

 

[Ellen aka Snow White]

Wow-but why the need to sign up with them then? I know there is probably more to it but the "organization" sounds a little scamish.

Not at all! They have been in business for over 20 years. The way the organization is set up is what makes it work and last so long. The representative flew to SC to meet with us and go over all the logistics. The reason we are going with them is that we can raise this large amount of money that is needed under a non-profit status. Then the family does not have to pay income taxes on it and the donations are tax deductable for indiv. and businesses.
I am waiting to get permission from the webmaster to post a link to the organization.
Ellen

 

[JessicaR]

We have a little girl in our neighborhood that has leukemia. There have been numerous fundraisers in the past year for her. The one that has worked out well with great profit is a McDonald dinner night. The neighborhood and schools send out flyers to attend on a certain night and McDonald's donates a percentage of the profits. Worth checking out. I will ask to get some other ideas for you also.

 

[browneyes106]

My friend's sister was in the same situation years ago. She needed a kidney transplant and it wasn't going to be covered completely by the insurance company. They did several fundraisers such as raffles in which the prizes were donated by different local busineses, they did a baked potato lunch fundraiser and basketball tournament.

A couple of years my boyfriend had a coworker whose son was going through leukimia and they had an iPod raffle. The coworker's 5 siblings each bought an iPod Nano and they sold tickets for 5$ each. They raised over $5,000 with that fundraiser. They also had three pancake breakfasts and they received a small grant from a local foundation.

 

[Ellen aka Snow White]

My friend's sister was in the same situation years ago. She needed a kidney transplant and it wasn't going to be covered completely by the insurance company. They did several fundraisers such as raffles in which the prizes were donated by different local busineses, they did a baked potato lunch fundraiser and basketball tournament.

A couple of years my boyfriend had a coworker whose son was going through leukimia and they had an iPod raffle. The coworker's 5 siblings each bought an iPod Nano and they sold tickets for 5$ each. They raised over $5,000 with that fundraiser. They also had three pancake breakfasts and they received a small grant from a local foundation.

One thing we are going to discuss is getting a raffle license. They are illegal to do in our state without the license - hopefully it won't be something that costs a lot! Anyone have experience with getting a raffle license? That is on my list today to try and figure out the logistics of. Thanks again everyone for all the ideas - keep them coming!
Ellen

 

[soccerchick]

One thing we are going to discuss is getting a raffle license. They are illegal to do in our state without the license - hopefully it won't be something that costs a lot! Anyone have experience with getting a raffle license? That is on my list today to try and figure out the logistics of. Thanks again everyone for all the ideas - keep them coming!
Ellen

Can you create your own organization get charity status/501(3)C? I think it takes a while to do so, but the rules for raffles and such are different for these groups.

 

[disneybound2010]

Don't they have health insurance?

Don't count on insurance to help at all. One of my dearest friends just received a new liver. He was denied at 2 hospitals because his insurance covered up to $350,000. All the expenses together would total over $800,00. They hospitals denied for "inability to pay." Nice, huh?

Thankfully, he did get the transplant, but it was a very big uphill battle and the insurance company was no help.

 

[disneybound2010]

OP, I am so sorry to hear about your niece and nephew. I will keep them in my thoughts

Around here, some of the best fundraisers have been things like cruise-ins or a "ride for the cause" type thing. They usually start at a specific site, pay a donation and then go on a big ride with a group of other motorcyclists. It can raise a lot of money. They will also set up a BBQ or cookout at the start site(often a park or fairgrounds) and there will be vendors there that donte their proceeds, activities for kids, bands. They are always a nice time and it goes to a good cause.

You can also try to get the local fire department to do a boot drive. THose seem to be pretty productive. The firemen and other volunteers will stand in the middle of a busy intersectionwith their boots and people can stop and drop a donation it. I always stop for these...even if it is only $5.

Spaghetti dinners and bake sales do okay around here, but the first two are the ones that really seem to work the best. Good luck to you.