Reasons for Unit Fundraisers

[dsantos]

I'm new to my pack, and I recently attended a committee meeting where all the adult leaders startind griping about money woes. They were complaining that pack fees would need to be increased, den dues would go up, parents and adult leaders don't want to shell out $$$ for uniform components, scouts have to pay for their derby cars, etc etc. I joined as ACM, but am now also an ADL, Pack Growth Coordinator, and Pack Outing Coordinator, and am starting to take on the duties of Pack Trainer. Looking in the Leader's Guide, it states that fundraisers should only be performed because there is a "legitimate" need for the funds. Personally, I consider uniforms, books, materials, dues, and anything else that the pack/troop/unit can pay for (in order to keep the burden off the parents and volunteers and thereby attract more kids to the program) are "legitimate." Is this a typical opinion or would "Council" disagree?

 

By the way, I asked my CC about what the unit does for fundraising, and she said that all they do is popcorn. Granted, this pack did 11K is sales this year, it's not like all that money goes to the unit......

[nldscout]

11K in popcorn averages to about 3300 for the pack. Where is that money going?

[local1400]

parents and adult leaders don't want to shell out $$$ for uniform components, Well where do they expect it to come from? Scouting costs money, but so does every other activity. Money is tight these days (Ive got to replace both our vehicles at once) but I still found good deals on uniforms on ebay. The unit should pay for awards, advancement, etc. and the parents should supply uniform parts.

[Lisabob]

How many boys are in this pack? In our pack of 25-35 boys we averaged between $5-$10k in popcorn sales in a given year. While on the lower end this made things a bit tight, on the higher end that was more than enough money to cover basic costs (awards, pwd cars, blue & gold budget and derby budget, rank books, and reduced cost or sometimes free outings/special activities including summer day camp). As a rule we did not provide uniforms although we tried to help parents locate sources to purchase or acquire uniforms at a low cost whenever possible. We also kept a small fund to help families in need with various scouting costs.

 

So like nldscout, I would also want to know just how it is that your pack can't live on the profits from 11k in popcorn sales too. Maybe your budget needs re-alignment. To put another way, maybe the group's priorities for funding need re-alignment.

 

As for justification for fund raisers, my experience is that practically anything passes muster. We routinely held a Christmas wreath sale and said we wanted the profit to pay for "unit expenses." Never got questions about what that meant (and in fact we did use the money in that manner - usually to pay for a couple of more expensive activities each year like a lock in at the local zoo, etc.).

 

The bigger question about fund raisers is whether or not you will get sufficient participation from the families in your pack to make it worth while. Be careful not to burn them out un-necessarily, which seems to happen a lot these days. Keep in mind that you might only do one or two of these a year but their kids' schools, church groups, and every other extra curricular group is also probably doing fundraisers too. Before you try to "sell" a fundraiser make sure the parents all understand where your current funds are going and what would be paid for by yet another fundraiser.

[scoutldr]

The "book answer" is that the funds can be spent any way the Chartered Organization allows you to spend them, since they "own" the funds. The unit committee should plan the year's budget needs, then plan the fundraisers to cover those expenses, or else pass the expense on to the parents. If the committee decides that paying for unifoms is a unit expense (which is not very common), then plan the fundraisers accordingly. What the leaders' guide is talking about is that you shouldn't plan fundraisers just to see how huge the pack treasury can get, without a clear plan for using the money. Raise only the funds you need. Back in the day, the program taught that scouts should pay for their uniforms, camp fees, etc, by earning the money (mowing lawns, babysitting, etc). A modern compromise is that fundraising proceeds are placed into individual "scout bucks" accounts, proportional to the scout's participation in fundraising. The committee can decide how the scout accounts can be used...some limit it only to camp fees, and others allow it to be used for uniforms, books, or "anything from the scout shop."

[evmori]

Yeah, where did the Pack's portion of the popcorn sale go? That's a tidy sum of money?

 

And to answer "Reasons for Unit Fundraisers" would be to raise funds for the unit.

 

Ed Mori

Troop 1

1 Peter 4:10

[ScoutNut]

My Pack sold $12,500 this year with 45 Scouts. With that money we pay for all advancements & awards, handbooks, scarf/slide, red patch vest w/council patch, mothers ribbons/pins, den numerals for shirt, any costs for Pack meetings (including speaker costs), Pinewood Derby cars, Christmas present for all scouts & sibs at Holiday Pack meeting (Tonight!), regular training costs for leaders (not Wood Badge or Phillmont, to much $), & the Scouts fees for any Pack outing. We also try to keep any costs (outings, Blue & Gold, etc) for the families as low as possible.

 

Uniforms are typically the responsibility of the individual family or volunteer. We encourage proper uniforming & do our best to demonstrate it. We don't REQUIRE it.

 

We do not charge Pack dues and the popcorn is our only fundraiser.

 

Den dues are up to each individual den to figure out based on the costs involved in what they want to do over the year. We have a large communal cabinet in the room the dens meet in that is full of various "stuff". Lots of craft supplies and things people have come accross that they felt could be useful. As things get used up they are replaced by parents and leaders. This helps out a lot!

 

With your Pack having about double the number of boys (80+) as mine (45), I can understand their consternation at having only sold $11,000 in popcorn. Is this a big drop from previous years? How much are your Pack Dues? What does your Pack typically pay for (or did last year)?

 

It sounds to me like they need to do a better job with figuring their budget & communicating to their families what they are selling popcorn for. Their options now are to cut back on what they would normally pay for, hold another fundraiser, or both.

 

[dsantos]

I don't know how many boys were selling popcorn. I do know that the pack budget plans are all "above board." I am not talking about a big "GO OUT AND SELL SELL SELL" fund raiser every month. I was thinking more along the lines of bake sales, pancake breakfasts, spaghetti dinners, etc where the average minimum cost is $5.00. Families out to eat anyway, why not one dinner or 1 breakfast per month, by scouts for scouts. Instead of $12 to $20 per person at the Olive Garden, Mom and Dad (and anyone else who would like to come.....hint hint new scouts) shell out $5.00 per head for "All you can eat spaghetti night" where their scout is now a waiter. Families get family time, Mom or Dad don't have to cook or pay out a butt-load of cash, the scout gets to learn to work to pay his own way, and the pack puts a little coin away to help out with pack dues or whatever else.....

 

Trust me, the last thing I'd like to do is pile another selling fundraiser on this community.

 

Personally, I always look for a buyout option......

[ScoutNut]

I do not think you realize just how much coordination & work is involved in a Pancake Breakfast or a Spaghetti Dinner!

 

In most states you would need to have a foodservice certified person in charge of the event. It takes $ to become certified. The facilities would have to be inspected by your health department. A Unit Money Earning Application would have to be approved by your council. Food products, paper goods, eating products, serving products, etc would all have to be either purchased or donated by someone. If you have them donated, letters have to be sent to various different possible donors WELL in advance of the actual date. Then there are the actual cooking facilities. Do you have stoves, ovens & griddles capable of cooking (& keeping safely warm) large amounts of food? Would you have to rent them? Then there is the selling of the tickets & the scheduling of the work shifts for the actual event.

 

And you want to do this once EVERY MONTH?????

 

Not in any of the units I volunteer in you wouldn't!

 

My son's Boy Scout Troop does a Pancake Breakfast every March & they start working on it in January or sooner!

 

If your Committee decides on a meal type of fundraiser to augment it's popcorn sales & Pack dues, I would suggest ONE a bit later on. March might be good because the treasury might be rather depleted after Blue & Gold in February.

 

 

[Lisabob]

ScoutNut is correct that these types of fundraisers are a huge amount of work. My son's boy scout troop is planning to do a spaghetti dinner in March and work has already begun on all the requirements to get it together. We have a troop of between 30-40 boys, at least 1/3 of whom are old enough and experienced enough to really be of major help with such an event, and probably 15 active adult leaders plus a strong "troop alumni" group, several of who will likely turn out to help us cook. I can't imagine trying to pull this off with cubs more than once a year. Keep in mind that in a pack setting almost all of the work would fall on the adults. (Let's face it, even the most helpful Tiger cub won't be able to do much to help with such an event. Maybe your Webelos can be more involved but even there, there are serious limits to what they can do without adult help.)

 

Keep in mind too that not everyone eats out. Where I live, about half of the families in my son's former pack were receiving free/reduced school lunches. These folks were not dining out once a month. Given that you cannot rely on just your troop for fundraisers, one key to a successful fundraiser of this sort (in my view) is to involve members of the community who are not already affiliated with the troop - meaning that you still have to sell tickets, by the way.

[dsantos]

I do not think you realize just how much coordination & work is involved in a Pancake Breakfast or a Spaghetti Dinner!

 

Good point....I hadn't thought about the whole "foodservice legal" aspect of it. My son's pack is sponsored by the school PTA and while access to the kitchen/cafeteria facilities shouldn't be much of an issue, I immagine that the state has some laws about food handling and prep, etc. Bummer.....seemed like a good idea.....but so was tying the bell to the cat....

[evmori]

Foodservice legal?? Ya think that's really necessary? How many Lent fish fries are foodservice legal?

 

I would agree a Pancake Breakfast or a Spaghetti Dinner is a lot of work, but the return is much better than selling popcorn. I wouldn't hold one monthly. Maybe twice a year.

 

Ed Mori

Troop 1

1 Peter 4:10

[Lisabob]

Regarding the legal issue, it may also depend a little on where you live, as state and local laws on these matters vary. But in some places, yes it is necessary. For example: we tried to get a person to cater our B&G banquet a few years ago. The first two or three people we approached wouldn't do it because the facilities available were not "up to code" for private caterers. This was a public school kitchen we were talking about, but local law is apparently different for private caterers. We ended up making it a pot luck and doing it ourselves (better idea anyway in my view).

 

As for the return, again it depends, this time on how much popcorn you are able to sell vs. how many people you can get to attend your dinner. As I mentioned my son's troop is working on a spaghetti dinner. We're expecting to make less than $2000, based on past experience. On the other hand I know most years when my son was a cub and they sold popcorn, the pack made a good deal more than $2000.

[CNYScouter]

Foodservice legal?? Ya think that's really necessary? How many Lent fish fries are foodservice legal?

 

Around here any group selling food is required to have a permit and go through Health Inspections and would be shutdown if found operating without one.

 

My father-in-law deals with the health inspections a couple of times a year at the church he belongs to as they do different types of dinners for fundraisers and always seem to have one or two violations that need correcting.

 

The permit however would cover a group such as a Pack or Troop using the kitchen as a fundraiser.

 

[ScoutNut]

dsantos, how much are your Pack fees?