A-Z of Fundraising

A-Z of Fundraising

The choice is yours…

A

  • Art do you know a painter, photographer or a potter? Get donations and hold an exhibition/sale
  • Auction of promises or a slave auction (get someone to offer to be a slave for the day or your manager to make coffee for the department for the week. Colleagues can bid for their services)

B

  • Baby competition ask colleagues or friends to bring in baby photos of themselves. People pay to guess who’s who, great fun and prizes for the winners
  • Bring and buy – at work, garden, community centre
  • Barbecues
  • Bag pack get a group together to bag pack at your local shopping centre. Don’t forget a garda permit and permission from the shopping centre (we can help with this)

C

  • Car boot sale
  • Churchgate collection don’t forget to get permission from the priest and organise a Garda permit (we can help with this)
  • Company contacts ask your suppliers for sponsorship, gift donations (get permission)
  • Coffee morning, cake sale ask a local cookery class or school to help

D

  • Dress down for the day. Pay for the privilege
  • Diet you, friends and colleagues – €1 per pound
  • Drink get sponsored to give up alcohol
  • DJ do you, your children or friends know one? Ask them to do the music for your event

E

  • Email invites and reminders to friends, their friends’ friends
  • Ever ready keep your eyes open to opportunities and keep your sponsorship form handy (if appropriate)

F

  • Fashion show
  • Fancy dress party or day
  • Fetes and fairs have a stall
  • Fine box for colleagues’ swearing or lateness
  • Football kit day at work. Pay to wear one

G

  • Golf Day – tee-off for charity
  • Guess the number e.g. balloons in a car, sweets in a jar etc.
  • Games: monopoly, chess tournament, team trivial pursuit, scrabble pay to enter, donated prizes

H

  • Hobbies what hobbies can help you raise money; sport, walking, cycling, art and craft, aromatherapy, massage etc.
  • Horse racing & dogs sweepstake at work

I

  • Ink write to everyone you possibly can and ask for a donation

J

  • Jazz night
  • Jumble sale

K

  • Karaoke evening (pay not to sing perhaps)
  • Kick-off 5-a-side tournament work, pubs

L

  • Line dancing evening
  • Lunch-less set a date for all your colleagues to bring in a packed lunch and donate the money they would have spent

M

  • Matched donation from your company
  • Murder mystery party

N

  • Neighbours Offer to wash their windows, mow the lawn or throw a street party (if it’s big and in the street, get council authorisation). Charge admission.

O

  • Organise events within events why not hold a raffle at your party or an auction at your sports tournament?

P

  • Party 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s beach, Easter, out of season Christmas, or no theme just for fun!
  • Pub crawl (fancy dress or three legged)

Q

  • Quiz night organise one, ask your local pubs to give you a percentage of the takings
  • Quiet time get a local youth group to do a sponsored silence

R

  • Raffle get local businesses to donate prizes
  • Races Three-legged, egg and spoon, relay

S

  • Services ask a hairdresser, beautician, masseur, tarot reader friend to come to your event and donate their proceeds or a day’s tips
  • Sponsored activities you and friends can walk, swim, dance, fast, bungee jump etc.
  • Shave off your beard or someone else’s (and get people to sponsor you)
  • Street party
  • Smoking sponsored abstinence, or/and donate the money you save

T

  • Treasure Hunt
  • Twenty-four-hour marathon: darts, stay awake or dancing. Sponsored or have a team competition
  • Tail pin the tail on the donkey. Pay to play, donated prizes
  • Tin collection tin or bucket to take to events: (make sure you get permission); contact us for details

U

  • Unwanted and unused gifts ask friends and family, colleagues: use for prizes or car boot sale.

V

  • Valet service: offer to clean cars inside and out for all your family, friends and colleagues

W

  • Website ask work if you can have a bit of space
  • Wine and cheese party homemade wine, prizes and cheese donated. Guess the wine’s country game. Charge admission and for entering games
  • Waltz big band night (use old-time records if can’t find a band) dinner-dance, admission fee

X

  • X-ercise – get your local gym to organise a work-out-a-thon
  • X-factor competition

Y

  • Young and old organise a big family reunion for all ages. Ask for donations, they’re bound to vie with each other over who gives you the most!

Z

  • Zest and zeal essential if you are going to make the best of your fundraising. Your challenge is demanding and exciting and your fundraising will make a real difference to people’s lives. You should feel proud that you’re doing it.