“No experience is needed to organize a fundraiser – only the
desire to give back to others. If people would step out of
their comfort zone and let their inner passions guide them,
they will be successful.”
1. Select a fundraiser. See attached Fundraising Idea sheet. When trying to select a fundraiser, be sure to take into consideration your time availability and the number of people willing to help you execute your event.
2. Plan a date. Plan to have your event during APFED’s National Awareness Month or when you think you could bring out the most people. It’s not a good idea to plan a walk in Arizona during the summer or in Michigan during the winter.
3. Submit an “APFED Fundraising Proposal Letter” Please do this as soon as you can, so that we have time to make sure all state registrations are completed.
4. Gather your network of volunteers to help. Talk to family/friends for support. Try to enlist as many family members and friends to help you prepare and host your event. If you have limited contacts within the community, try approaching a high school counselor for suggestions of school clubs looking for community service activities. Contact your local Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis Club, Lions Club, Rotary Club and other civic organizations for help gathering volunteers for your event.
5. Plan your fundraiser.
A.
Contact your desired location or business to secure a date. The Fundraising Coordinator will provide you with a more detailed list of requirements based on the type of fundraiser you select. For example if the location is a public park or street, check whether insurance is required and whether emergency medical technicians are required to be in attendance. If the event is at a meeting room or club, decisions will need to be made regarding food and amenities provided. PLEASE NOTE: Any event requiring a contract will need to be approved by APFED’s Executive Board. Please contact the Fundraising Coordinator with your event information and they will assist you in obtaining board approval.
B. Compile a list of merchants/companies whom you are going to solicit to support your fundraiser. These would include those from whom you are requesting donations of goods as well as those from whom you are requesting monetary donations.
C. Prepare a “Request for Donation” letters. See sample letter provided.
D. Visit merchants/companies requesting donations/support. Write down your contact person’s name and any other important information. Follow up on all requests within a week. Don’t be discouraged if a few follow up calls yield no success. Just ask—“No” is OK. Always remember to be polite and thank them for their time, regardless of whether they choose to support your event or not.
E. Request for Proposal (RFP). Some companies that you contact for support of your event may require a RFP. Please contact me immediately with all contact information, and the APFED will write one for you. NOTE: When you contact companies by phone remember that less is more; keep your RFP brief, but be sure to include all pertinent information. Maximize the opportunity that leading questions represent. Leading questions are your cue to sell, sell, sell. On paper, unless RFP size is specified, make sure you cover everything with as much detail as possible.
F. Send letters to family and acquaintances explaining your event and asking for donations, as well. Christmas card lists are useful tools at fundraising time! Be sure to include a mailing address and tell people to make checks payable to APFED.
6. Publicize your event. See Tips for Promoting your APFED Fundraiser sheet enclosed.
Contact local, US and State Representatives and Senators. Their involvement could generate publicity for your event. Often if their calendar is clear they will attend and /or speak. Prior to speaking to your legislators, prepare an outline of what you want their involvement to be. If a public figure is willing to attend your event, be sure to include this information in your press release.
Contact local news outlets: radio, TV, newspaper...and don’t forget any smaller publications such as bi-weekly/monthly, community-based newspapers.) Prepare a press release and be sure to submit it to the appropriate people/departments, being respectful of deadlines.
7. Follow up on the details. Contact all those who offered to volunteer at your event two weeks before the event, and again, at least 3 days prior. Keep a detailed list of every person that has volunteered including their responsibilities and contact information. It is very important that everyone knows their time obligations and exactly what to do. A pre-event meeting may be necessary to go over all jobs.
Contact the location/business coordinator, suppliers and volunteers at least two weeks before the event to reconfirm and to tie up any loose ends. Then contact them again, at least three days prior to the event, as a follow up. Be sure to keep all contacts, contract info, insurance, pertinent names, volunteer lists, etc in a special file to bring with you to the event. Be sure to have trustworthy people working any ‘fund’ tables and that those volunteers working with money have clearly defined procedures.
8. After the event.
If waivers are required, please be sure they are all kept and mailed to APFED at the conclusion of the event, with monies and all receipts.
Send THANK YOU notes to all businesses and people who supported the event, along with all of your volunteers. We will provide you with APFED cards, up to 20, for you to write a personal Thank you. Please contact the Fundraising Coordinator to verify how many you will need.
Any expenses associated with your event that would need to be reimbursed will require prior approval from APFED’s Executive Board. Please contact the Fundraising Coordinator for further information and save all receipts for expenses associated with your event. No expenses will be reimbursed without prior Board approval and proper documentation.
APFED Fundraising Ideas When selecting a fundraiser, it’s best to pick an event that you will enjoy planning and participating in. Please contact the Fundraising Coordinator for help in brainstorming future fundraising events. These are just a small sample of fundraising ideas, but feel free to be creative in selecting your own event.
APFED Holiday Card Sale Show APFED’s Holiday Card to family and friends; take orders for the cards and we’ll mail them to your buyers!
Bake Sale or Car Wash You can always piggy-back with a neighborhood, school or church function that is already being advertised.
Bowl-a-thon Recruit a group of people to help you—a Girl or Boy Scout troop, youth group, school class or gather family and friends; each participant gathers sponsors and collects money for each game bowled (or pin knocked down).
Change Drive Gather friends and family to display attractive containers as many places as possible for a change drive. This is a simple fundraiser and a great idea for children that want to get involved in fundraising.
Charity Ball Balls and Galas require more upfront planning and usually require a large corporate sponsor to offset the initial expenses of acquiring a location, food and entertainment.
EOS Walk Walks can be as simple as gathering friends and family at a park or securing a larger venue with corporate sponsors.
Garage Sale Have multiple families pool unwanted items for a weekend garage sale where the proceeds benefit APFED. Ask to use space inside a church or school gym so that larger groups of people can sell merchandise.
Golf Tournament Most golf courses have turn-key golf tournament packages. The costs can be offset by greens fees collected during pre-registration. Contact local courses to find out the details.
Have a Fundraiser through a Home-Show Company Creative Memories, Pampered Chef, Avon, Mary Kay, Longaberger Baskets, Southern Living at Home, Cookie Lee Jewelry, candle companies and many other home-based businesses often have specific fundraising programs or you can arrange for the proceeds from a show to benefit APFED.
Letter Campaign Write a letter explaining the disease and what APFED does; send it to family and friends--everyone on your Christmas card list. Ask them consider making a donation to APFED. We can provide a sample letter for you or help you write your own!
Neighborhood Block Party Sell tickets for admission having friends and neighbors purchase tickets for kids’ bouncy, sno cones and simple games with donated prizes.
Read-a-thon Great school project…collect pledges based on reading as many books as possible during a month. Read-a-thons are also a good way to get school friends involved in helping fund research for EGID.
Tips for Promoting Your APFED Fundraiser One of the most important aspects of having a successful fundraiser is promoting the event, regardless of whether your goal is to raise $50 or $50,000. Below are just a few ideas on how to help advertise and get publicity for your fundraiser. In order to help maintain the accuracy and consistency of the published information on eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders, please contact the Fundraising Coordinator for help creating any written materials needed for your event.
Identify Media Sources Make a list of all the potential media outlets in your area. Include television and radio stations, newspapers, small local/neighborhood newspapers or flyers, local parenting magazines, and organizations you belong to (church newsletters, club and school publications). Contact each one and find out what their policy is regarding press releases. Some news channels have a “Public Service Bulletin Board,” or will mention an upcoming event during newscasts. Be sure to ask what their requirements are for an announcement, such as maximum words permitted, deadline for submittal, and where the announcement needs to be sent. Also, don’t forget the Internet. Ask about placing a free banner ad online or a small reminder in an e-mail update, if the publication or station won’t give you free air time or space.
Newspapers, television and radio stations are always looking for a way to connect with the community. When contacting media companies, ask them if they would be interested in doing a story about your family and Eosinophilic Disorders or attend the event. Not only does this give your fundraiser a personal tie when it comes to publicizing your event, but it also helps create awareness for Eosinophilic Disorders. Most television and radio stations will have a fee to attend an event, even for a non-profit organization; so don’t be surprised if they decline. It never hurts to ask and smaller community publications will often be more willing to attend in order to get the story.
Identify APFED as a Non-Profit Organization When contacting the media, be sure to let them know this event is for a non-profit organization, and you are looking for a free Public Service Announcement. If you don’t identify yourself as being with a non-profit organization (501c3) you will often be directed to the advertising department, as they assume you are going to pay for an ad. Make sure receipts are furnished to the people and businesses that donate funds. You can contact the Fundraising Coordinator for assistance with providing receipts and for obtaining a copy of APFED’s 501c3 status.
Provide Accurate Information Make sure all the information you provide is accurate. Your goal is to be succinct, factual and enthusiastic when explaining your fundraiser and why you need their help promoting it. APFED’s goal is to accurately represent the EGID community, and not specifically one person or child. You should never exaggerate you or your child’s condition in order to grab media attention for your event.
Remember to include some basic information on APFED and Eosinophilic Disorders. It is important to realize that the general public has no knowledge of this disorder, and will be less likely to support an event for an organization that they have never heard of.
An example might be: “There will be a Bake Sale at ABC Elementary on Saturday, June 10th from 2pm to 4pm, to benefit American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders, a non-profit organization that supports patients and families living with Eosinophilic Disorders, by funding research and education. For more information, please contact………”
Depending on the guidelines for space or time, you can expand this to give a better definition of the disorder, but in simple, general terminology. Again, please contact the Fundraising Coordinator for assistance with any written information needed for your fundraiser.
Get a Public Figure Involved Invite public figures (Senators, Representatives, community leaders, school officials, local radio personalities, and TV News anchors and reporters) to attend the event. You can find e-mail addresses, telephone numbers and fax numbers for just about anyone online with simple web searches. By contacting public figures and sending them a personal invitation you will help increase the likelihood they will attend and promote the event.
Ask Local Businesses for Help Companies large and small are generally willing to help a good cause when they are asked for goods/services or for funds that are realistic. Ask your local grocery store to donate several cases of water to help with an EOS Walk. Contact a copy store to see if they can donate or discount the price of printing flyers. Start with the businesses you and your family patronize frequently…and include that information in your request for help.
“My family grocery shops at your ABC store every week and we’d really appreciate your help with an APFED fundraising walk that’s planned for October 20th. We are still in need of several donations, including bottled water, to help make the walk a success. We’re hoping to raise, XX amount of money in order to help fund research for Eosinophilic Disorders. Can I count on your store to help us out with several cases of water or for a cash donation?”
Don’t forget to ask local businesses if they will allow you to place a flyer in their office/store advertising your fundraiser. Ask family and friends to put flyers at their place of employment, around the neighborhood, at day care centers, and schools. If a family member agrees to place flyers at their place of employment, be sure to make mention of the family member’s name, and relationship to the person with the disorder.
Remember, when asking for donations, it’s always preferable to ask in person. It’s much more difficult to say no to a person standing in front of you, than by phone or mail.
Alternate Ways to Support APFED
Please join us in supporting APFED. You can help APFED raise funds for education and research by:
• Utilizing either www.igive.com or www.buyforcharity.com for all your online purchases, and designating APFED as the charity you are supporting. A certain percentage of your purchase will be sent to APFED.
• Adding or renewing your magazine subscriptions through www.efundraisingonline.com. 40% of the total purchase amount will be sent to APFED.
• eBay users: Here's a new way to give!through MissionFish. http://www.missionfish.org/NPMMF/nphomepage.jsp?NP_ID=21711.
APFED does not condone the practice of buying and selling elemental formula on eBay. It is for this reason we cannot accept designations of any kind related to these sales.
For more information on APFED and other fundraisers
Please contact our APFED Fundraising Coordinator, Julie A. Springer via email
