What Are Other Types Of Fundraisers That Are Working For You?

[hotdesk]

A couple of more ideas that have not been mentioned:

 

1) collect used cartridges, old cellphones, etc. for recycling. recycling these items can earn you up to $4.00 per item. See www.cartridgesforkids.com and www.empties4cash.com Also if you get other organizations to sign up you can earn a 10% thank you bonus. So if anyone wants to do this please im me so you can help my group earn an extra 10%

 

2) selling bottled water during a local parade. we have one in June of each year and have earned about $300 each year.

 

 

[dScouter15]

In my troop, we found that the fundraisers work best when the ideas originate with the scouts. Last year, the PLC and Troop Committee felt that it would be beneficial for the troop ton try to subsidize some of the summer camp fee - we wanted to have a coach bus transport the troop to camp. The troop's main fundraiser had been popcorn sales, which the scouts have never really gotten into, but it generates enough to keep the council happy and cover most of the troop's operating expenses. The troop also does a few other fundraisers periodically, with most of the proceeds going into the scouts' individual accounts.

 

So, the PLC was charged with coming up with a fundraiser that the scouts in the troop would commit to. At the PLC meeting, several ideas were discussed, and several were discarded. The one that had the most support and seemed to be the most feasible was the idea of running a dunk tank at our town's weekend fair. The SM was skeptical that the scouts would actually want to follow through with this, so suggested that the PL's go back to their patrols and gauge support and commitment. The report was that the scouts thought this was a great idea, and would run with it. So, the committee set up reserving a spot at the fair, and renting a dunk tank - and that was the extent of direct adult involvement!

 

The PLC came up with a great plan to assign each patrol to a 2-hour slot for working the tank. The duties would rotate - one patrol member would be on the "hot seat", one or two would handle collecting money and the balls for the target, and the rest were responsible for "advertisement" - trying to get as many people to pay the $1 for three chances. The patrols made signs, costumes, cheers, etc to use for their advertising. Whichever patrol made the most money would win a pizza party, which a couple of the adults agreed to pay for. To sweeten the pot, if the troop was able to raise enough to cover the cost of the bus, the SPL and ASPL would volunteer to get dunked in their full uniforms (the scouts, by the way, wore their troop T-Shirts and jeans or shorts when working this).

 

The event was incredibly successful, and we're planning on doing it next year. We raised about $1100 (more than enough for the bus) - not bad for two days! The scouts really had a blast with the competition thing, and there were no problems with getting enough scouts to work each shift. Also, there were just a few scouts who didn't want to go in the dunk tank, but were able to participate by collecting money or other "dry" activities. The circumstances were also working in our favor - we had excellent weather, and the fair was very busy - a good chunk of the money we earned came from friends the scouts had from school or church, or from the scouts (and their families) dunking one another.

 

What's even better about this is that adult involvement was a minimum - the committee handled renting the tank, collecting permission slips for all the scouts (we thought it would be a good idea if they would be in a dunk tank), and adults rotated supervising the scouts in the tank. Believe it or not, the fundraiser also help boost patrol unity - an all-around benefit, and the scouts are already talking about it for this summer.

[kb6jra]

Lot's of good stuff in this thread.

 

My troop, for standard operational dollars, asks that each scout bring in 100 aluminum cans per month. This will pay for our standard program of patches and standard expendatures. Years ago the parents decided they "did not want to be a fund raising institution, they wanted to be a scout troop." So we typically don't participate in the Popcorn sale, however each boy is given the opportunity to do that on his own when the time comes. We have in the past done car washes to fund Eagle Projects. We've wrapped gifts outside local retailers. The retailer usually offers the wrapping, boxes, and bags, we get "tipped" for the work. It's actually very lucerative.

 

Big money comes from grants from employers. Some of the adults employers will pay for the hours they serve doing community service. Some will offer a few hundred dollars a year per employee to a charity, one parent's company matched 3 to 1 every dollar the employee donated, up to 10G's...now that's a donation.

 

 

[ScoutNut]

Unless your Troop holds it's own NFP status & has it's own tax id number, any "donations" made payable to your Troop will NOT be tax deductable.

 

If your CO is a Not For Profit the checks could be made payable to them. That would make it a deductable donation.

 

I sure hope you make it plain to these corporations or they might have a nasty suprise if they have an IRS audit.

 

 

[frank10]

SN,

From the donner side it's not a real problem, they can count it as a donation, an advertising expence or just an operating cost... all the same. It's on the receiving end where the IRS "could" cause a problem.

[briantshore]

My daughters Girl Scout Troop started off as a new troop this past fall. We collected aluminum cans from various buisnesses. Our local Wal-mart store sets them out for us. About 1 garbage bag every 2 days. One of the girls dad is a fireman. He brings in 2 big bags every 2 weeks. We are averaging about $50 a month. There is a local scrap yard about 2 miles from my job. Very little laber and time is used, for a very good return. This is a good way to add extra funds for some of the exta's you may want to add to your program.

[ASM915]

A lot of good ideas on the posts.

If anyone out there has an insurance policy with Modern Woodman, there is some money to be made if the troop is NFP. Modern Woodman has a program in place, where they will match dollar for dollar up to $3500 (that $7500 if your troop can raise the first $3500), for NFP Org. fundraisers that their policyholders are involved with. They usually want/need a 3 month notice to get the ball rolling.

Maybe some other insurance companies might have the same type of program.

As for the dump tank, see if the scouts can talk some of the local law enforcement, firefighters, politicians or school officials and coaches to take a sit at the tank, then advertise, advertise, advertise.

 

[kb6jra]

On the IRS front, Boy Scout Troops are considered 501 ©(3) NFP's. Scouting is an educational entity. You can go on the website for the IRS and search for the registered 501's. All Scout Councils are listed, as are many troops. They don't give the TIN but at least they're listed.

 

If your CO will not, can not provide a TIN you should be able to get one from your Council.

 

Our troop has our own TIN for donation purposes. It's not that big of a deal to get it done from what I understand. I didn't have to fill out the paperwork, so my opinion on easy may be a bit skewed...lol.

 

 

 

[ScoutNut]

"Boy Scout Troops are considered 501 ©(3) NFP's."

 

Not the individual units. BSA units are OWNED by their CO, not by the Council. While all BSA Scout COUNCILS are considered 501©(3)'s by the IRS, the individual units are only considered not-for-profit if their CO is, or if the unit has applied for their own 501©(3) tax status & tax number.

 

I doubt that any Council out there will give out their TIN to units. If a unit does not have a NFP CO, or their own number, & a corporation expects their donation to be tax deductable, the check has to be made out to the local BSA Council.