need help with fundraiser for somone with cancer

[muffyn]

my brother-in-law is seriously ill with cancer. after having surgery for bladder cancer & being told 3 months ago he was cancer free, a recent scan has now shown he has stage 4 pelvic cancer & too many other spots in is lungs etc for any of it to be operable ( really, )

BIG family is planning a spaghetti dinner fundraiser. with all the "cooks" in the mix < meaning everyone wants to be chief> there are lots of disagreements for how to be handled. One sister insists there be NO alcohol & be held in her home church. other relatives have been told beer is a good money maker. they want to hold a raffle, but also some venues do NOT allow a raffle. so its really a mess planning.

MY big question to you guys is what has worked best for you? how are the best ways to handle or offer from these things to bring in the best $$$.
they are collectiing donation stuff from stores & if worse comes to worse have gift baskets in a chinese auction ( purchase tickets & put stub in bag) , or possibly a silent auction will work? ( still depends on location)
venue is still being determind by cost of the place & what they will let them do. this is also , not a free for all invite, meaning it is by word of mouth ( which is several hundred already) . they want to keep some kind of control of the people who come. ( guess there are good & bad points to that)

now, also, seems I am the only one not getting donations,. I have NO idea how to go about this! I do not deal with any stores frequently for them to know me enough ( we did ask many years ago for 4-h at stores & was always told NO) I can only imagine how many requests they must have.
soooooo what suggestions do you have for me? I am also a very emotional person. I am sure I will be in a puddle of tears just asking for this from someone . what places are more apt to donate? we are also hoping to get donations of food supplies , but no luck so far.
oh. & "I" live over 30 miles from where most of the family & where the event will be held.

thanks , guys, I am sure there must be someone who has dealt with this.

 

[disney1990]

my brother-in-law is seriously ill with cancer. after having surgery for bladder cancer & being told 3 months ago he was cancer free, a recent scan has now shown he has stage 4 pelvic cancer & too many other spots in is lungs etc for any of it to be operable ( really, )

BIG family is planning a spaghetti dinner fundraiser. with all the "cooks" in the mix < meaning everyone wants to be chief> there are lots of disagreements for how to be handled. One sister insists there be NO alcohol & be held in her home church. other relatives have been told beer is a good money maker. they want to hold a raffle, but also some venues do NOT allow a raffle. so its really a mess planning.

MY big question to you guys is what has worked best for you? how are the best ways to handle or offer from these things to bring in the best $$$.
they are collectiing donation stuff from stores & if worse comes to worse have gift baskets in a chinese auction ( purchase tickets & put stub in bag) , or possibly a silent auction will work? ( still depends on location)
venue is still being determind by cost of the place & what they will let them do. this is also , not a free for all invite, meaning it is by word of mouth ( which is several hundred already) . they want to keep some kind of control of the people who come. ( guess there are good & bad points to that)

now, also, seems I am the only one not getting donations,. I have NO idea how to go about this! I do not deal with any stores frequently for them to know me enough ( we did ask many years ago for 4-h at stores & was always told NO) I can only imagine how many requests they must have.
soooooo what suggestions do you have for me? I am also a very emotional person. I am sure I will be in a puddle of tears just asking for this from someone . what places are more apt to donate? we are also hoping to get donations of food supplies , but no luck so far.
oh. & "I" live over 30 miles from where most of the family & where the event will be held.

thanks , guys, I am sure there must be someone who has dealt with this.

I am so sorry to hear about your BIL. Our granddaughter was diagnosed with cancer 2-1/2 years ago when she was only 8.

I don't know for sure if this will work, but it definitely worth looking into. Places like Chick-fil-a will let you hold a fundraiser at their restaurant. You get a percentage of the sales from everybody that comes into the restaurant (and mentions the fundraiser or has a flyer) for a certain period of time say 5:00-8:00 pm. Like I said, I know they do this for schools (and a lot of other places do also) so they might be willing to do it in a case like this.

 

[golfgal]

Make sure you set the charity up properly with the state/federal government or the taxes can be horrible. Also, if you are going to have a raffle, make sure you get the proper permits for that. You might want to consult a CPA or a tax attorney to make sure you are doing everything legally.

 

[TheBigBadWolf]

I am so sorry to hear about your BIL. I hope he is being treated at a top ranked cancer hospital like MD Anderson in Houston. That can make all the difference in the world in beating cancer!!

One fund raiser we had that was very successful was asking people to pledge $10 a month for one year. We sent flyers to everyone we knew, and put up flyers in stores around town, making people aware of the family's need. We made donation "booklets" and gave them to people who signed up. That raised about $1000 a month to help with the family's expenses, and was very successful, bringing in over $10,000 total. That was a fundraiser that nearly everyone could afford to contribute to.

An area hunting club held a special benefit hunt, a chili supper, and auctioned off donated items. All entry fees and proceeds from the dinner and auction went to the family. It raised over $5000.

There were also donation jars out in all area restaurants, convenience stores, etc. I know they raised a lot of money that way too, but I don't remember how much. There were other fund raisers at the time, but it's been over ten years ago and I can't remember what else they did.

Good luck to you in raising money to help your BIL. I hope he gets better.

 

[muffyn]

I am so sorry to hear about your BIL. I hope he is being treated at a top ranked cancer hospital like MD Anderson in Houston. That can make all the difference in the world in beating cancer!!
:

he is being treated at University hospital in Cleveland Ohio
supposed to be a very good hospital.
but he has been in & out of hospital wayyyyyyy too much.
a heart attack during his 1st chemo round this spring ,, way too many blockages he went into ER for, last week a blood clot in his leg.
then today he crashed during a chemo round.
he is 'ok' at this moment,, but sheesh. & he turned ONLY 50 this spring.