Fundraising. BSA moms too please.......

[BlsdMama]

So........  DS has been working/planning his Eagle project.

 

He narrowed it to two options:

 

Benches/rest area for the nature trail that goes through several communities. He would be working on a rest area near our community.

Benches/outdoor area for my grandpa's senior/active living home.

 

 

Decided he really wanted to do the area for the senior home.  Great!  Met with those folks to suggest this and/or look at anything they really want as a project.  They want  a gazebo.  I'm scared, but DH says we can tackle that and DS is all on board.  We have a LOT of family in this area so I know the labor is just a non-issue on this.

 

Funding - we were thinking a raffle.  We know several business owners in the area would contribute prizes and one grandpa belongs to the farming community, another to the local fire department.  We also suspected we could request assistance from the local boy scout troop and they'd pitch in and even if they didn't, we expected it would go well, kwim?  Now, DS isn't afraid to talk to folks, but a raffle just seemed so open and shut.  Have the tickets printed, go door to door and sell them at a couple local businesses.  

 

We went ahead with project approval, DS meeting with the necessary folks, picking out a design, meeting with city planner to find out permits needed, etc.  

 

Great.  He drew up the design and now we are ready to get a bill of materials and get down to the nitty gritty of fundraising.  He was filling out the form for fundraising approval  and we discovered:

 

NO raffles.

 

 

Oh. Carp.

 

 

Now what?

 

I have NO idea how  to raise $4k in the next six weeks.  DS turns 18 in March and we have to pour concrete before it freezes.  (October-ish.)  

 

I'm open to suggestions.  I admit to having a major panic attack.

[Guest]

What about hosting a race? All the non-profits in our town are doing it so it must make good $$$.

[Alessandra]

IMO, that is too much money to raise in a short time. Can he go back to the benches? Ds was just working with a friend who had a great project, but complicated. The boy in very glad he went and proposed a new project that was almost completely funded by the place that will benefit from it.

 

For a gazebo, would you need a building permit? If so, how much time for approval?

[Joshin]

Do you have a Lowe's in your area? Lowe's has a fund where they donate a certain amount of raw building materials to Eagle projects. Not sure of the details, but all the troops I know of use it as a major source of funding.

[Guest]

He needs to sit down with his mentor. The bill of materials etc is supposed to be in the project submission and approval obtained before fund raising and solicitation of donations begins. Read the fine print on funding.

 

To raise 4k I would be doing some events like mom's night out or a talent show....but you mention asking the local Troop to help. Is he a Lone Scout?

[StephanieZ]

Can you ask businesses or families to "sponsor a board" . . . Ask for $20 per board or so . . . and let them know your $4000 goal. Be sure to give the businesses some return in the way of advertising . . . Say, something like all sponsors will be listed (have them write down how they want to be listed) . . . and maybe have "Silver Level" 100 dollar sponsors and Gold Level 200 sponsors and Platinum Level 500 sponsors. Plenty of small businesses would be happy to donate 100-200 or even 500. Our small business (vet hospital) does that for virtually any community-based (non political) project that asks for funds. At least several per year. Actual clients or friends who ask in person are pretty much guaranteed to walk away with at least 100. I'd imagine that many families or individuals would readily donate $20 . . . 

 

You could also have a work day or two of a community project such as garbage clean up at a park or similar, and ask people to donate $x/per pound . . . 

 

These sorts of things are so tough. 

[BlsdMama]

So - more information. :D

 

I think the biggest problem is the town is a town of 1500 people - about twenty or so businesses but most of them very small.  Maybe I'm being pessimistic.  They are VERY community minded.

 

No, he already has approval.  No bill of materials was necessary - just an estimate.  So we knew how much we needed but didn't realize we couldn't do the raffle.  This was very bad news. :(

 

They want us to stay local and there is a decent chance that the local store will donate a percent of materials, probably even a high percent like 50+.  For concrete, paying for the materials is necessary, but we have family members (plural) who do concrete professionally. (Labor free.)  We also know we have builders.  So, essentially the cost is just cost of materials - $4,000 is the high estimate.

 

 

I'm wondering..............

 

 

So, I think the next step is to go local and see what material will cost us, a.k.a., ask if they will donate any of the material.

 

THEN start thinking numbers?  Someone told me it is normal for the company to front some of the costs.  Should I ask if they have any budget for this?

 

 

The marathon is a good idea.  I appreciate that idea too.  

 

Yes, he's a lone scout.  Our troop has transitioned to Trail Life.  CJ really wants to get his Eagle and so this year is his final year and he's registered as Lone Scout.  Also our "home" troop is a solid 45 minutes from the town we're doing this in so the support from our home troop just isn't going to be there the same as if we were there, kwim?

 

 

[BlsdMama]

Family night at the park?  Projector/old movie?  Popcorn and soda for sale?

 

Funnel cakes?

 

The Lions club and American Legion do funnel cakes once a year and maybe they would let their equipment be used by a Scout?  Especially since Grandpa is a WWII vet?

[Sarah CB]

We were able to raise $7000 in about that time period.

 

The kids were raising money for a music and culture exchange.  We had about 12 kids who busked in the entrance of the local grocery store. They raked in the money.

 

Ds used to busk on his own for things as well - he averaged $200 per hour at the grocery store if it was the right time of day. Around 3:30 to 6pm was usually the best time. Long weekends were fantastic.

 

Do you have anyone who plays violin? 

[Guest]

My sons each received a $500 grant from the Ford Motor Company for their eagle projects. I'm not sure if that's something only handed out to our area council or not, but I see that the 2016 funds have been distributed already. Does he have time to apply for the 2017 funds?

[Guest]

And IIRC, some materials were donated by The Home Depot.

[Guest]

How about the ol' hot dog/coffee/donut at the highway rest stop or in front of a store for a couple of weekends? That one is not excessively labor intensive. The local stores may donate the ingredients and the people stopping usually are generous in donating.

We do much better with that than spaghetti dinners or pancake breakfasts.

 

Mom's night out also does well. He could run it in the school gym on back to school night for parents....nhs could help him run activity stations for the kids while parents meet teachers...parents donate in return for the baby sitting.

[retiredHSmom]

My son just finished his eagle project.  Lowe's sold us materials at cost.  What that actually means varies from item to item but overall the discount was 30%. (its lower on wood, higher on hardware).  We were lucky in that the beneficiary paid for the materials.  I do like the idea mentioned upthread of "selling" boards in the gazebo.  I suspect that the families of the residents might be willing to buy them and local businesses too.

[raptor_dad]

I've always felt fundraising for scout activities is overly complex due to the ambiguous legal status. Donations to a scout troop are not tax deductible... as such raffles and bingos and such are not clearly legal. Earmarked donations to the chartering org are in a gray area that the BSA discourages. A benefiting org can fund raise for supplies if it is a non-profit. So a church sponsored nursing home could run a raffle and use the proceeds to buy supplies for a scout project, provided they don't use the scout logo etc Given that the BSA doesn't view fundraising as a key part of Eagle projects, I would expect them to be more hands off with regard to funding. Now if the nursing home is for profit... all bets are off. 

[DawnM]

UGH.  I wrote a long post and it went poof.

 

I am surprised he didn't have to fill out the fundraising portion of the project proposal for Council prior to getting approval.  Our boys did.

 

And I am also surprised no one batted an eye at $4,000.  Both of my boys' eagle projects combined wasn't even $3,000.  One was $1,500 and the other was $1,200.  That included food to feed people at workdays too.

 

We didn't fundraise but many in our troop sell those camp cards.  Does your council have them?  They tend to sell fairly well.

[fairfarmhand]

Auction instead of raffle.

 

Silent auction allows people to stop by and bid on what they want.

[displace]

I don't know if this is allowed, but maybe solicit from the living center that the gazebo is for, or their families? Maybe they have a Facebook page you can ask for help, or even a wider audience, like an Alzheimer's association (if the facility is a nursing home), etc?

[BlsdMama]

No, no raffles in BSA. They're considered gambling. And whatever fundraising you do, you have to clear it with your Council--in ours, with a 2 week heads-up. There's a form on the National site. I like the idea of sold boards. I'd check with your local lumber yards. We have one that does stuff at cost, and then throws in about half of it for free. Can you fund raise for what needs to be done by fall, and then more fundraising as the project goes on? Your District Advancement Chair should have told you no raffles when she went over your proposal. I'm so sorry. 

We've got the form....

 

We're going to head to the local business today with a materials list and just talk and see what comes of it.

 

Cost for concrete should be around $500.  I have no idea if the concrete company will discount or not.

 

Unfortunately this needs to be wrapped up and done by fall.  CJ turns 18 in March - therefore out of Scouts.

 

And freezing weather in October-ish means the slab needs to be done and poured by October, kwim?

 

 

 

**Now here is a question**

 

Let's say the local group is sponsored by the Lion's Club, yes?  And let's say the Lion's Club does a fundraiser (like a raffle) and donates the $$ to CJ's Eagle Scout project.  Is that acceptable?  Any $$ over the cost of the project would go back to the local group.

[BlsdMama]

Be aware that BSA does not look kindly on the Go Fund Me site, etc. as they take a hunk of the monies. Perhaps your town has some fund raising sites that don't skim off the top? http://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2014/07/21/crowd-funding-sites-eagle-project-fundraising/

 

 

Sigh.

 

Small town.  

 

 

This is both a blessing and a curse right now.

[Guest]

..

Edited July 27, 2016 by Heigh Ho

[StephanieZ]

Well, since Trail life is a religious and intentionally discriminatory alternative to BSA, then you might run into more trouble with business sponsors. I know that our small business who happily sponsors nearly anything would not sponsor anything related to those religiously exclusive organizations, especially Trail Life since it was created specifically to allow more aggressive discrimination related to religion and sexuality. So, anyway, you may not be aware of the religious/political leanings of the various small business owners, since many (ours included) make a point not to affiliate our business with politics, but nonetheless, there are likely some if not many who'd not be willing to support that particular organization.

 

So, I recant my suggestion to seek general (people who you don't know well on a personal basis) business sponsorships. Our business (and those whose owners I know well) are happy to sponsor/support nearly any local "do good" projects/etc, with the only exceptions being we won't support any organizations that are discriminatory or otherwise immoral in our view. Most businesses seek to serve/support their community as a whole, and wouldn't want to be associated with organizations that discriminate against people of other faiths/politics/etc. Sorry about my misunderstanding. 

 

So, I'd aim your fundraising efforts at folks you know personally and/or churches you are affiliated with and that share the views of the organization. 

 

Is it possible to delay the project time line to next spring (for the concrete pour) to allow more time for fundraising? If so, then one thing I like is offering actual helpful services such as leaf raking or mulch delivery/spreading . . . Nice fall projects that can serve people and raise funds at the same time. As long as you promote it as "suggested donation" and have the man power to do it, then you'll probably have plenty of luck and generous tippers. 

Edited July 27, 2016 by StephanieZ

[Guest]

If her son is seeking Eagle Scout rank, then it's through BSA and not Trail Life.

[Leav97]

Could you fundraise enough to get the concret pour done while working on the rest? 

[justasque]

We've got the form....

 

We're going to head to the local business today with a materials list and just talk and see what comes of it.

 

Cost for concrete should be around $500.  I have no idea if the concrete company will discount or not.

 

Unfortunately this needs to be wrapped up and done by fall.  CJ turns 18 in March - therefore out of Scouts.

 

And freezing weather in October-ish means the slab needs to be done and poured by October, kwim?

 

 

 

**Now here is a question**

 

Let's say the local group is sponsored by the Lion's Club, yes?  And let's say the Lion's Club does a fundraiser (like a raffle) and donates the $$ to CJ's Eagle Scout project.  Is that acceptable?  Any $$ over the cost of the project would go back to the local group.

 

I think the way to do it would be to have the funds donated to the nursing home, earmarked for the gazebo.

That said, this is a pretty high amount to raise, on a very short timeline.  I would have a "Plan B" going concurrently.  Since the bench plan is minimal, you could be working that plan at the same time, to some extent.  And if the gazebo goes well and you still have to build a few extra benches, that's ok.  Good lessons on managing large projects on a timeline ensue.