7 Totally Fun FUNdraisers!

Raising money – most of us r-e-a-l-l-y dislike it, but if you have kids, it’s something you’ve learned to accept as a necessary part of providing excellent experiences with their teams, Scouts, schools and faith groups. Imagine instead having FUN while FUNdraising for the programs and causes you care about!

Fundraising Ideas | Engage Your Community!

Committed parents are the key ingredient for any successful fundraiser. Creating opportunities for quality family time and engaged adult camaraderie gets parents involved and aligned with the important mission of your group. Designing fun fundraisers that also appeal to your greater community gives new families a chance to learn (and get excited about) joining.

TIP: VolunteerSpot’s easy and free online signup sheets make it a snap to organize all the people and things you need to run a successful fundraiser!

7 Fun Ways to Raise Money AND Build Community

1. Summer Splash Movie Night
– Invite families to cool off on a hot summer’s night with a pool party and movie. String up a large sheet for a screen, grab a computer and projector, and charge for concessions and pool admission. Offer watermelon, hot-dogs and popsicles for sale and hire a lifeguard to keep an extra eye out on guests.

2. Adventure Challenges – Arrange a group play day with local ziplining, rock-climbing, kayaking, horseback riding, or other adventure sports operations. Many outfitters will donate their services to your cause or school in exchange for your parents and kids marketing their services to others. Pre-sell tickets to the event good for free admission on the day of the event and a discount any other time. Sell additional meal tickets for a picnic lunch or barbecue on the day of the event. The Autism Society of North Carolina raised nearly $31,000 at their recent Ziplining for Autism event.

3. Tournaments – Pack in a day of family fun with tournament-style competition. Think kickball, dodgeball, bowling, horse shoes, mini golf, ping pong, you name it - if you can play it, it can be a tournament! Charge teams entry fees, sell t-shirts, and make sure to have plenty of concessions for sale. Spice it up with team disctinctions like parents v. kids and teachers v students. Throw in simple carnival booths like a "pie in the face" booth or dunking booth for spectators to 'pay to play' to see their favorite coach or teacher get messy!

4. Car & Dog Wash – Kids love getting wet during those hot summer months, and a car wash/dog wash combo is the perfect opportunity! Give each child a designated number of washes to pre-sale. These can be sold to friends and neighbors, or you can buy them and give them away as gifts to friends and co-workers. On the day of the event, more customers from the community are pulled in who drive by; have a few kids out “selling” the wash with large posters and lots of energy!

5. Academia Fair – Cue Jeopardy theme music and put on those reading glasses to raise money for a good cause! Plan a spelling bee, a math competition, a science fair or read-a-thon! Admission fees and sponosorship (participants ask family and friends to donate as sponsors) can go to your organization. These fundraisers are a fun and brainy way to have fun and build community!

6. Rummage Sale – This fun fundraiser helps families clean out the garage and closets while raising money for your group! Carissa Rogers of Klamath Oregon said, “ It’s amazing that all the ‘treasures’ magically show up year after year - people LOVE to donate to a rummage sale! And the best part is, the community comes to buy it and ‘donates’ to your group. We asked everyone to add a dollar to the price after negotiated ‘for the school’. Hardly anyone said no!” Carissa’s school raised $1,600 this year from their rummage sale. Add a bake-sale fundraiser or lemonade stand as an additional money-maker.

7. Get Active Fundraisers -- Plan a "healthy" fundraiser that incorporates exercise-based activity into raising money. Host a walk-a-thon, jog-a-thon, jump-rope-a-thon, fun-run or a dance-based activity. It’s a great way to earn money and promote staying active while having tons of fun!

We hope these ideas are fun and successful for your team, school or group . . .
If you’ve got an interesting FUNdraiser to share, please tell us today over on our

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