MissEducated is looking to raise cash quickly so her small club can replace their broken double mini-tramp in the U.K.
Trials and Nationals are coming up FAST.
The long and short of it is that the club needs raise about $4000 fast.
… We are looking at bag-packing at one of the big local supermarkets. We are running our annual tariff competition at the end of May and will be running a tombola there, but any other ideas that would work at a small competition would be great. …
I know how they can raise an easy $500 on a Saturday morning. …
But leave a comment if you’ve any brilliant, fast fund-raising ideas. Thanks.
9 comments ↓
A raffle, a cake sale, a sponsored gymnastics show for parents / friends / relatives etc. Bag packing is an excellent idea – but you need so many people to help!
We sell baked goods outside of the D1 gym meets at our university. Lots of hungry folks leaving and understand the cause they are supporting.
A typical Australian fundraiser is a barbercue outside Bunnings (like our version of Home Depot) on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Usually selling sausages on a bread roll or bacon and egg rolls. Selling canned drinks for a little under the regular retail price helps too. You can easily make $300-500 a day or more if its a long weekend as people seem to be shopping for DIY projects.
The bbq outside Bunnings works really well in New Zealand too.
How about a leotard/ training gear sale (new and used), with a % going to the club? Some manufacturers are really good about supporting clubs that way; or if there are some clever sewers amongst the parents. It’s not just the gymnasts who like bright blinged gear, their little sisters do too and their friends!
Personalised gear – doesn’t take much with the range of fabric paint available now.
Sit outside a Walmart in a wealthier neighborhood with all the youngest, cutest kids, a sign asking for help “for the children,” and a panel mat for them to do cartwheels on, and straight up beg.
Think of it as either 5 projects aiming for $800, or 8 projects aiming for $500. Everyone has suggested good ideas; it’s a matter of keeping momentum and not having parents/volunteers end up with mental exhaustion!
Hey “MissEducated”.
. Every gymnast and instructor gets a piece of paper and in the weeks up to the “Sponsorday” tries to get as many sponsors as possible (in the neighborhood, family, friends, etc.). Each sponsor then agrees for a chosen amount to give the club for each flip made by the gymnast or for the total amount of flips.
We have an annually day where we do flips for cash. It sounds kind of weird, but keep reading
At the “Sponsorday” each gymnast get a counter (non-competitor) to count all the flips in the given time (30 min). At the end of the day is everything added together and bills are sent to the sponsors.
Just an example:
At my club we have 800 active members, but let’s do the math with 250 gymnasts (last years “Sponsorday”)
250 gymnast each sponsored by $2,5/flip (10 sponsors giving $0,25/flip per gymnast)
30 min –> est. 150 flips/gymnast
150 flips * 250 gymnasts * $2,5 = $93.700
We do an annual tumblethon. All the kids get a sponsorship card, and their friends and family pledge donations.
It’s not the only fundraising thing we do, but definitely the best in terms of workload:profit.
The gymnast then get a minute to do as many forward rolls up and down the floor as they can. Easy day of coaching in the gym, where the kids just count each others rolls. The kids love it, and almost no work for us to do it. (oh, except the coaches have to do it too!) Just a small matter of printing sponsorship cards.
We have two prizes also. We do it around easter time, so the person who raises most money gets a giant easter egg, and all those who return the cards are entered into a draw for another easter egg. (and we cheekily display the egg in the gym for a few weeks prior)
They’re presented with a certificate signed by the coach with the number of rolls they achieved.
Issues to be aware of is dizzy kids, and making sure that groups are reasonably well matched. Small elite kids get towards 60 rolls per minute, a typical rec kid gets around 35.
Also run an annual table quiz, bag packing, make a small profit on tracksuit & leotard sales & running snack shops at competitions.
Similar to #7 and #8, at Santa Monica Gymnastics Center, we did the annual cartwheel-a-thon. Sponsorship and one week where the kids take a moment out of their regular practice to do as many cartwheels as they can in 5 minutes. It’s fun and it’s tiring exercise. Sponsors should be given a rough idea of how many cartwheels to expect, lest they pledge some amount outside of their budget range (flat rate is an option).
Everyone who raised at least $20 received a stuffed animal specialized with the gym logo; those who raise $75 or more got to participate in a sleepover (open to those who wish to simply pay $75, as well).
Toddlers too young to do cartwheels over panel mats would see how many times they could walk the beam and touch the balloons tied to each end.
The fundraiser is also carried at my current gym.
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