Archive for July, 2008

Fundraising Venues

Picking the right location for your fundraiser is critically important to it’s success. This  is a great first item to meet with a committee about cause you never  know who might have connections where! Make a list of all possibilitites and then you can narrow it down from there. There’s lots of  elements you’ll want to take into consideration.

-Who’s your target attendee? Male? Female? Age bracket?

-Can they get to the site easily?

-Is it possible to pick an interesting venue?

-Does it offer enough parking?

-Indoor Restrooms?

-Can you afford it? Make up a rough draft budget .

-Will you need to rent tents, porto johns etc?

-Time of year and weather

-What other events will you be conflicting with?

Target Market – Once you know who will be purchasing tickets to your fundraiser, you can think about if the location will be an attraction. Hotel Ballrooms are a great way to go for an upscale gala but if your event has the ability to be outside or perhaps an interesting venue that would offer both indoor and outdoor space, all the better. The more interesting the venue, the more attendees you”ll attract!

Time of Year and Weather - Depending on where you live, weather and time of year are also something to think about.  Hotels charge more in wedding season, in their high season, and for Saturday nights. In some cities, like Denver, there isn’t any low season – they are pretty much busy all year around. Negotiating with a hotel is an art form all by itself! More on that later!  You’ll always have conflicts with some other event but that shouldn’t dissuade you. Unless you live in a community of  20,000 or less and you don’t go up against the one charity event that everyone goes to.

Parking – Of course it’s best if there is plenty of parking and an easy walk to the venue. But shuttle busses, school buses, limos or trolly cars can all be utilized if needed. And if you need to valet cars, there are companies that do just that. Don’t even think about letting a group of teenages valet cars for you.  You can’t afford the liability! Better to outsource this to professionals.

Affordability – Figuring out what you can afford is never easy, especially the first year. But you know for sure  that you do not want to give every dollar you make to a hotel and you know for sure that you don’t want to wind up OWING money after all your hard work. At a minimum you need to make up a rough draft budget with some expenses and projected income.  More on Budgets later!

Went to a wonderful community spaghetti dinner to benefit a neighbor last night. I didn’t know what to expect as they had only had 6 weeks to plan and execute the event. What an outstanding job they did!!!  It’s awesome to me what an integral part of community the making and sharing ­of food really is. I love the old saying “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach!”, But, I wouldn’t limit it to just MEN - everyone enjoys a good meal, snack, treat……add a “cause” and - well, NOW YOU’RE COOKIN’.  

This fundraiser was great fun! They served penne, red sauce and meatballs, good bread with a tub of butter, and a little Italian salad. Beverages included soda, beer, and lemonade. People brought their own wine. They had at least 200 people attend and a small army working that night.They had a DJ that was going to crank it up about 9 PM and, Holy Toledo, the dessert room was unbelievable! They had a Chinese auction with fabulous baskets, a smaller silent auction with some higher valued items, a 50/50 raffle, ­all kinds of opportunities to help raise money for a family, clearly in crisis. The family live in my neighborhood. Mid-30’s, 3 children, he is unemployed.  Two months ago he found out he has cancer, they amputated his leg, then they found nodules in his lung! REALLY, really hard stuff in their lives - but, gratefully, they have many friends. The outpouring of support made me feel good to be an American and so proud of my community. I’ll let you know more details as I follow up.  There’s recent good news: they have been able to surgically remove the nodules in the lungs and they are just going to keep watch on the others. Sometimes you just gotta say God Bless America!