Fund raising ideas needed for church camp

[Tap]

The church that our family attends is having a meeting next week hoping to get some ideas on raising money for the summer kids camp and some missionary trips. In the past the church has always paid for any child who wanted to go if the parents could afford the trip. They don't foresee having the money in the budget this year.

 

They are looking for ways to have the children earn the money either by fundraising or by earning funds by working small jobs.

 

Do you have any suggestions and if you do, how to advertise for small jobs that need done?

 

Since many people in the congregation do not have a lot of money right now (hence the tithing is down and the money is not available) the typical 'as people at church' isn't likely to be very fruitful.

 

 

ETA: the kids are 3rd grade -highschool.

Edited April 23, 2010 by Tap, tap, tap

[cougarmom4]

We've had a 'service auction' before...where the youth offer specific services (raking leaves, babysitting, lawn-mowing, window-washing) and then people in the church bid. They've also brought baked goods that they've made and done a cake auction at the same time. I like it somewhat better than just asking for donations--because I think it's good for the kids to learn to work to earn their way.

[Mergath]

If the kids are at all crafty, they could make small, religious items and sell them at a craft fair or an auction. Or, if anyone has some basic tools, they could go around to garage sales and the like and buy old, falling apart furniture, refurbish it, and then sell or auction it. That would raise money and teach them how to do something useful. :D

 

How old are these kids? If any of the older ones have any special skills or knowledge, they could host a lecture or a class at the church and charge a small fee to attend.

[momofkhm]

They called it "2 Girls and a Freezer". They made specific dishes and sold them for either $6 (4 servings) or $10(6 servings). It was a basic entree. You still needed to add your sides. They cooked one day and week and then you could pick it up or have them delivered. The 2 things I remember was stromboli and jambalaya. There were like 5 dishes each week and they semi- rotated. They raised enough money months before the mission trip. They probably did it for 3 or 4 months.

[Photo Ninja]

What restaurants do you have around your area that do fundraising nights? We have several, like Fresh Choice and Chevy's and various pizza restaurants. You set a date, make up a flier, and when people eat there on that day, they give the flier to the server. The group then gets a percentage of the sales. This can net a lot of money and requires very little effort outside of advertising sp people go out to dinner. Sometimes you can have students outside the restaurant giving fliers to people going in to eat and explaining that all they have to do is hand the flier to the waiter and your group will get a percentage. It doesn't cost anything more than the regular cost of the food. You just need to advertise.

 

Collecting cans and bottles and taking them to a recycle center to redeem the deposit. This is more work, but the kids can do it themselves, and families can help.

 

Car washes can be a hassle, but you can earn money if you pre-sell tickets.

 

The students can host a talent show (charge maybe $5 per family) with snack sales (donated cookies, etc.)

 

Parent's night out. The teens, with a few adult volunteers as supervisors, can babysit at the church for set times on some different Friday or Saturday nights, say 6:00 - 10:00. Parents can sign up ahead of time so students can know how many children to plan for. Have activities prepared for the children and set a decent babysitting rate either by child or by family.

 

A BBQ lunch served after church for a few well-advertised weeks. This can be hot dogs or hamburgers and chips, or make it nicer with tri-tip and salad. Or if it would work better, have the students prepare and serve a pancake breakfast before church.

 

Advertise around local neighborhoods that students are available for yard work, like mowing, raking and weeding, for a set amount per hour. Let an adult handle the phone call reservations, then have several students descend on that home and do the work. They can do several homes each Saturday. The money then goes to the camp fundraiser.

 

Yard sale. Ask people in your church to donate usable but unwanted items and have a giant yard sale at your church. Advertise to the entire city via fliers, posters, newspaper and Craigslist ads.

[Chris in VA]

Our youth group yard sale is tomorrow. We expect to make around $1500-2000 for our mission trip. We have a big sign out front of the church that we put up the week before. I think they take out a free ad in the newpaper, too.

 

 

Kids start earning the approx. $250 they need in the fall--they rake leaves, spread mulch, do yard work, host a parent's night out at the church (this requires adults to help supervise, but it's pretty lucrative, as most parents will give at least $25 for 6pm -10 pm babysitting).

 

THey also usually hold a coffee house--Starbucks donates free coffee and the kids bring baked goods. People just contribute while we pass the hat. The kids sing and play instruments for the entertainment. It lasts about 2 hours.

 

We also hold a Super Bowl Sunday bake sale. The trick is NOT to price the items. Just let folks donate, and they will be more generous.

[JessaMae]

ChickfilA and Pizzeria Uno are two restaurants around here that give a percentage to fundraisers.

 

Joe Corbi's is a company you can sell pizza and cookie dough and raise money (our church has done this.)

 

Free Car Wash - you advertise it free, but the kids get people they know to sponsor them per car they wash. So if you have 5 kids washing a car, and they each received .50 per car from 10 sponsors, then you've earned a total of $25.00 on that one car. It can add up!