75 ways to fundraise

1. House Party - Everyone loves a party. Either take donations or charge an entrance fee.

2. Corporate Matching Gift - Ask a local company to match the amount of pledges you receive from your group.

3. Boot sale - Gather all the stuff you want to get rid of and ask your friends to do the same. Put all the money you raise towards EveryChild.

4. Cake sale - Host a cake sale. These work well in conjunction with other
events. Get others to help prepare the treats.

5. Extra change boxes - Create these little boxes for your friends and family and ask them to place them in their bedroom. At the end of the day they can drop spare change in the box. Be sure to collect!

6. Answering machine message - This will alert everyone who calls you that you’re doing something special and trying to raise money. Let them know you need their support.

7. Return address labels - Print return address labels for your outgoing mail. Include a cheerful message about EveryChild and your work to help. If you want to make it really easy for them, include a pledge form and a self-addressed envelope.

8. Restaurant collection - Ask your local restaurants to place a money jar at the front of the restaurant. Be sure to check with the manager—they may even place it in a high-traffic area where many patrons see it!

9. Fundraising dinner - Ask your favorite restaurant to host a dinner for you. They supply the food and you supply the pledge forms.

10. Happy hour party - Invite all your friends (and their friends) to an after-work party at the local pub. Ask for a £10 donation.

11. Movie/theatre ticket donation - Ask your local cinema or theatre to donate several tickets. Sell or auction them and put the money towards EveryChild.

12. Movie party - Host a movie night. Get a new release, or create your own marathon. Don’t forget popcorn and pledges.

13. Birthday gift pledge - This is a great way to raise money, as your
friends are spending the money they normally would, plus they don’t
have to find you the perfect present!

14. Creative friends - Find a local artist or ask a creative friend if they would
donate a piece of art or some jewelry that you could auction.

15. Silent auction - Accept donated items and set up bidding tables.

16. Youth theatre or concert - Organize a play or concert and charge parents admission.

17. Radio station - Call your favorite radio station and ask them to make an announcement on the air. They may even interview you. You can ask for pledges to be sent directly to EveryChild in your name.

18. Classes - If you hold any kind of class, invite everyone in it to contribute.

19. Unwanted gift sale - After the holidays, people always have gifts they would like to get rid of. Invite them to bring them in (unused only) and offer them for a discount to others. Collect the profits for EveryChild.

20. Picnic - Have a picnic on a nice day.

21. Neighbors - Write to all the people on your street.

22. Talent competition - Host a talent competition, or even a stupid human tricks show!

23. Garden tour - Check with a local historical society to see if they would sponsor a garden tour of one or several houses in your area.

24. Get the word out - Use your newsletter or a mass email to let everyone know what you’re doing.

25. Baby-sitting - Offer your services to give your friends a nice quiet evening out and put the proceeds towards EveryChild.

26. Pet sit - Are your friends going away for a weekend and need someone to look after the cat? Volunteer.

27. DIY - A lot of your neighbors would probably rather pay you to do repairs or paint than someone else. Advertise your services around the area, and make sure to take a collection for your work.

28. Karaoke night - It doesn’t matter if you can sing or not. Spend an evening
at the karaoke bar and make sure you ask the announcer to tell everyone
you’re singing for donations!

29. Ebay.co.uk - Have an online boot sale! Gather up some items or have friends
donate things and auction it on Ebay!

30. Game night - Get out all your board games and start playing. Invite people to donate.

31. Bowling nights - Plan a fun night of bowling at your local lanes. Ask the owner to waive the cost of bowling and collect the money for donations.

32. Used book sale - Ask everyone you know to donate the books that they have already read or are just gathering dust on their shelves. Set up a little weekend book sale, and be sure to put up signs so people know where the money is going! Once they know they may give even more!

33. Local shops - Ask a local store manager for a percentage of the profits from one item in their store. Make sure you ask for a popular one!

34. Swear jar - Put out a swear jar and whenever anyone says something naughty, make them pay up. This can be adapted for insults, or even compliments, to encourage better behavior.

35. Dress down day - Hold an EveryChild dress down day. Everyone gives a donation for the privilege.

36. Church announcements - Make sure everyone in your congregation knows what you are doing. Put an advertisement up, or get an announcement made.

37. Remind them - If you don’t receive an answer the first time, ask again. People are busy and often just forget so try not to pester.

38. Rock on - If you know any musicians, ask them to perform a benefit concert.

39. Children’s party - Be a clown for a day. Volunteer to work a kid’s birthday party, and be sure to gather donations from all the parents.

40. Wine and cheese party - Ask for donations from your
guests and from wine sellers and grocers.

41. Alumni organizations - Contact any alumni organizations
you’re involved in and get them to spread the word for you in
their newsletters and at their events.

42. Make a contribution yourself - Always lead the way with your pledge. If it is high, then people will be more generous.

43. Mystery games - Hire a murder mystery game company to help you organize an event. Or invent your own. People are always excited to try these out.

44. Music quiz - Play your own version of Name That Tune. See how good your friends are.

45. Spelling bee - Encourage local kids to get involved in a spelling bee. Get them sponsored for every correct word. They will be learning something and helping other children.

46. Photographic competition - Invite all your friends to submit their favorite pictures from their holidays. Get them to pay a fee to submit, and offer a prize to the winner.

47. University challenge - Get some local students involved in a university challenge, whether it’s a test of brains or brawn.

48. Polaroid scavenger hunt - Arm your teams with cameras and clues, and see who can get the most pictures in a short amount of time. Include silly items like- the whole team inside of a telephone booth, a couple ballroom dancing in the aisle of a grocery store, or two people eating a Mars bar from either end.

49. Clubs and organizations - Offer to speak to local community clubs about EveryChild’s work or more generally, children in developing countries, in exchange for a donation.

50. Raffle - Get donations for prizes and hold your own raffle. Be sure to check the fundraising guidelines though.

51. Local newspapers - EveryChild is more than happy to help you get an article in your local paper about your efforts. Let us know if you need help.

52. Arts and crafts fair - Bring a group's talents together at an arts and crafts fair.
Whether painting is a hobby in your spare time or you are a professional
photographer, there are many possibilities for stalls.

53. Bingo - Get access to a hall and a willing caller (with a loud voice and an even louder bow tie) and have a group bingo night. Everyone could bring some food for an enjoyable evening. Charge a small entry fee.

54. Poetry/short story evening - Give your friends a chance to bring their work to a group reading. You may have the next best seller sitting at home on your computer.

55. Sports day - Why not have a sports day with egg and spoon races, wheelbarrow races, or a mini marathon? Be sure to have a wide range of events for all levels of athleticism.

56. Coffee morning - Gather a few friends together and charge a small entrance fee.

57. Pamper them - Aromatherapy, massage, or hairdressing parties can be a great, relaxing way to raise money for EveryChild.

58. Non-event - Make invitations for a “non-event.” Imagine the money your guests might spend on a black tie party, including clothing, makeup, hair, transportation, etc. and ask them to pledge that money to EveryChild, instead of going through all the cost and trouble.

59. Be dramatic - If you have contacts with a theatre, have a front of house
display, and make sure to have collection boxes at intermission. We can
supply you with the ingredients for an eye-catching display including posters,
leaflets, and other information. Be sure to get your cause mentioned in the
program.

60. Five-a-side - Get a game together.

61. Foreign coin collection - Ask for all the foreign currency everyone has left over after his or her travels, and get it changed to donate.

62. Sponsored dog walk - Or have your own dog show with all your neighbors.

63. Fashion show - Create your own stylish event with the help of friends and donations from local shops.

64. Ball - It takes a lot of preparation, but most people like the chance to dress up.

65. Carwash - Volunteer to grab the hoses and sponges for an afternoon.

66. Guess the number - Fill a large jar with sweets and invite everyone to guess
the count for a small fee. The winner gets the jar.

67. Climb Mount Everest - Or the equivalent, on the stair climber at the gym. Or use the rowing machine to row from England to France. Make sure to get sponsors, and if possible, spectators.

68. Christmas party - Take a collection at your Christmas party, or hold your own in honor of EveryChild at your home or work.

69. Balloon race - Get participants to write their address on a card, with instructions to contact, and put it inside of a helium balloon. Release all the balloons from the same place, and see whose gets the farthest! Charge a small fee for entry.

70. Coin painting - An artist draws a simple design on the ground, and participants are encouraged to fill it in by placing coins inside. Or organize a mile of coins, and gather enough to span the space.

71. Who’s that baby? - Have a competition with old baby photos - whoever can guess the most wins a small prize, and everyone contributes to play.

72. Homemade goods - Do you sew, knit, crochet, paint, sculpt, etc? Sell your works!

73. Antiques road show - Imitate the television program with your friends. Get everyone to bring in their old things and ask someone with a little knowledge to assess their value.

74. Recipe book - Gather recipes from the group and create your own recipe books. Sell them and donate the profit.

75. Ice cream social - Invite everyone to bring a topping and a donation.