It’s interesting how some subjects come up repeatedly in a short period of time. Recently people have been asking for fundraising ideas or commenting about how they want to have a cool fundraiser where they are. So here’s a few ideas you can do with a few friends or a small gathering or blow it out with a big crowd if you’ve got the resources and the space!

Home Parties:
Have an Art Swap. Invite your friends to bring art that they are not using or are tired of and do a swap. Have each person donate $20 or paying what the item is worth into a pot which gets donated to the cause of your choice.

Have a paperback book exchange, or a real book exchange. Donating what you would have paid for the new books to your cause.

A clothing and or jewelry exchange: donate half the retail value…that way everyone gets a deal!

Find out which friends have your shoe size and do the same deal!

Or if you don’t want to deal with “stuff” Just have your friends over for a potluck or a wine tasting ( everyone brings a bottle ) and then donate what you would have spent on a dinner out or a night out at the club/pub/joint. Include the tip.

With all the above I would have a conversation regarding the charity you have chosen and or the facts and FAQ’s re the disease or illness you are out to impact. Try to find out facts about the charity such as what’s the % of each dollar that goes to research or patient services etc. Be informed. Have a conversation to inform your guests. Mail out your invitations: 1st of all it’s nice to get an invite in the mail and 2ndly people who can’t attend may chose to donate anyway. Invite them to do so.

My hairdresser Rochelle has been doing “hair days” out of her salon for various causes important to her clients. She’ll get coloured hair extentions donated and put them in for girls and moms during the fundraiser for 10-20 bucks a pop. She has also organized groups of hairdressers to donate 3-5 hours and done weekends of hair cuts, shampoo and blow dries etc…with all the proceeds going to a cause.

Have a garage sale. Have a neighborhood garage sale and donate the proceeds.

There is a reason Big events are annual. They take alot of energy and effort to gather a crowd big enough to raise enough dollars to cover the costs and be worth it for the charity. If it weren’t for an anonymous donor of 20k at my event I would have considered it a failure given the energy and effort that event took from me. This is one of the reasons I am an advocate for A Midwinter Nights Dream, it’s a far better use of me as a resource to facilitate 20 or more of these chapters around the country, that it is to have me throw 20 parties.

So whether you are raising money for a walk, run, ironman, or a research institute: Get creative ~ enroll a team and start a conversation for making a difference. Ten people having a house party that raises 500 bucks is a sizeable donation, have a contest who can raise the most gets a prize!

Happy Fundraising!

Hi All~
This is a bit of a different post as there are several things to communicate and I’ve been fairly silent since easter weekend.

1) Whenever I get off my schedule- which looks like 2.5 days of quiet and being “off” per week I get all exhausted and screwy. It throws me for a loop and I drop out writings and my focus goes towards getting through the days. Just yesterday I had to have my assistant drive me home and cut our meeting short as I began crying because of my frustration in communicating what I wanted to her; ALL ME not HER. Damn Emotional Lability! It just goes to show you that when you compromise on your promises to yourself NOTHING good comes of it.

2) I am looking for an intern who will take on managing the events page of this site such that it can be a comprehensive listing of ALS related events from around the country. This would include researching and posting the events on the calendar and working directly with me to manage that content and communication with those causing the events.

3) I’ve had several requests for sponsorship of this site recently and we are working on a program – all proceeds from this will go towards underwriting our fundraisers and directly to ALS research in a 50/50 split. I’d like to focus on industries that would directly be of service to my audience: those that support PALS and their families as well as have a section for folks who want to support what we’re up to with their businesses. We’ll start with packages as low as 100/m with a 6 month minimum. And we’ll have a non compete with in your industry: ie, if you’re a printer you’ll be the ONLY printer. Please contact me through this site if you are interested.

4) I will do a full post about this however I am an ambassador for A midwinter Night’s Dream and that means I have a promise to them to facilitate 20 new chapters around the country by next September. I am looking for introductions to high school teachers in all areas of the US. If they have been impacted by ALS that works and if they just want a cool program to inspire and train their students in business and event planning that works too! AMND will support each chapter to be successful and given their track record of raising 1.5 million in 6 years from 1 New York High School, I believe they have a handle on this.
I have decided I can reach more people by facilitating them than I can on my own, though I will keep having Kiss My ALS events and initiatives. Right now expanding AMND is my initiative.

5) RE: the Debacle surrounding my surgery at Northwestern hospital I have not yet completed my letter to the president and will do so in the coming week. I find that I am still upset about it and it’s interfering with my ability to be effective in that endeavor. 1 month after surgery I am still down 14 lbs, and haven’t been able to gain any back. Given the difficulty I now have in speaking~ it’s like the procedure took my breath away and diminished my already impaired speech to 1/2 of what it was over night, I am not a fan of the early placement of the peg tube. I wasn’t informed of the consequences of the procedure – no one told me it would do this to my ability to communicate and it’s been a devastating loss. Had I known this was a possible result I would have waited at least 6 months if not a year and planned my activity accordingly. It’s as if they think you don’t have a life to live when you have ALS. RIDICULOUS.

6) We are having a meeting on Sunday 4/18 to plan several new events for Kiss My ALS. On the Agenda we have:
-ARtists for ALS event in late summer
-Hair style days and RED hair extentions coordinating with the artists event
-An expanded Pub Drive for 1/15-2/13/2011 with new beer and liquor sponsorships and prizes
-A spin a thon
If you are interested in participating in any way please let me know!