Organize Your Own Event

Are you looking for a way to help children who have been abused or neglected?

Perhaps you have a friend or relative who has been served by one of The Home’s programs or maybe one of our many services has had a positive impact on your own life. Whether you have a personal connection to The Home or you are just looking for a fun way to raise money for a good cause, organizing your own event is a great way to get involved.

In The Home’s 200-year history we have seen events that come in all shapes and sizes, for all audiences. Whether it’s a simple fundraiser like a car wash or one that requires more planning, such as a concert or golf tournament, every event makes a difference. Use your imagination and have fun!

Third Party Event Guidelines

The Home can help in the following ways:

• Offer advice and event planning expertise
• Provide promotional Home for Little Wanderers materials
• Provide and approve The Home’s logo use

What The Home cannot do:

• Provide staff or volunteer support
• Provide tax exemption information
• Provide funding or reimbursement for expenses
• Provide donor or vendor mailing lists
• Guarantee event attendance by the CEO or staff
• Guarantee corporate sponsorship

Things to Consider

• Who will be invited: friends, family, co-workers, church or social group, neighborhood, town, etc.?
• What is your budget?
• How will you generate revenue: tickets, registration fee, donation to participate?
• What is the schedule of activities for the event?
• When would you like the event to take place? (Create back up plan in case of rain or other outside influence)
• When should you prepare an email or printed invitation and when should the invitation be sent?
• Where will the event take place?
• Are there any permits or permissions required to use the venue?
• Does the location supply the equipment you need or will you need to rent anything?
• How will food be prepared and set up? Does it need to be picked up or delivered?
• How do you want the venue to be organized (registration or greeting area, tables for eating, dance floor, etc.)?
• Do you need to create an event committee or recruit volunteers to help before or at the event?

Promoting Your Event

The key to successful fundraising is getting the word out about your event. One way to increase participation is to put a spin on your fundraiser, and market that angle. That little extra spin can turn a typical fundraiser into a fun event that people want to be a part of in whatever way they can. And don’t forget to make it clear that all proceeds will benefit The Home!

• Send a letter, postcard or invitation in the mail or send an email with the event details and ask everyone on your email list to pass it on to all of their friends and family
• If you or your group has a website, post the event in a prominent place on the site, or set up a dedicated page for your event on social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn
• Create and distribute posters or flyers. Ask others to help you post on bulletin boards in your community (library, church, gym, school, coffee shop, etc.)
• Send a press release to your local newspaper

After Your Event

• Be sure that you have collected all of the money raised for your event
• Return any borrowed or rented equipment
• Pay all vendors for their services
• Send thank you letters to your guests, and sponsors
• Consider making it an annual event and start planning for next year! (Make a list of what worked and where improvements can be made while it’s still fresh)