Steve Lieberstein has a well rounded background in all kinds of fundraising.  In our one hour interview he talked about the logistics of planning an event, the importance of details, how to motivate volunteers, examples of creative event themes and auction items and how to connect the event with other fundraising strategies.  That’s what I call 360 degree planning!

Here’s a short audio clip (8 minutes) from our interview, with transcript version below:

Sandra Sims: You’ve done a lot of different types of fundraising, because you talked about doing prospect research, and you’ve done major gifts and special events. In your experience, how does an organization find that balance in using those different fundraising strategies?

Steve Lieberstein: That’s a great question. Nowadays you hear and you see the great nonprofit organizations really have a good menu of very diverse fundraising strategies. I’ve been in a lot of environments in the past that were so heavily event focussed, special event fundraising seems to be the, I would say, ‘sexy’ fundraising strategy, but I think the key is to have a diverse balance, and from my experience, number one is major gifts. If you don’t have a major gift program, I always say to people, what are you waiting for? I think major gifts, planned giving, direct mail, and I think now we’re not just focussing on direct mail, we’re looking more towards a more integrated communications program for annual giving, so we can reach different constituencies.

You also have to look at corporate and foundation giving as well. It’s also important to look at the potential of earned income opportunities. I’ve just been working with a hospital recently and we had an upscale boutique shop that it was a great earner. But, of course, resources come into play. How do you do all these things? I think the face-to-face is important and building on those … you’re ouching so many people with the special events.

Sandra Sims: Well that’s definitely a great point. I like the fact that you talked about just now, how major gifts are very important, and you may have a really good special event, but if you don’t have something to back it up with, you’re probably losing out on some opportunities there.

Steve Lieberstein: I couldn’t agree with you more Sandra. I think it’s key. Right now, if you look at trends right now, and some nonprofits are scaling back on the type of events, and people are getting frustrated with their major gifts work, because they’re receiving a lot of ‘Nos’ at this point, but it’s still important to cultivate those relationships and to be in their face and let them know things are … don’t go towards the doomsday approach, I’m sure, which you’ve heard before, and just let them know what the organization or the institution is working on, and when it’s time, you’re going to be in a better position to be a beneficiary of a gift.

Sandra Sims: That is a great point. That’s much more of a long term perspective, a long term strategy, rather than, you know, just ‘what can you get right’ now from them.

Steve Lieberstein: Yes, exactly.

Sandra Sims: Definitely. Of course, today we’re mainly going to be talking about special events and you’ve done quite a few special events, and in particular, our interest today is in auctions. Tell me a little bit about some of the special events that you’ve planned, and whenever you start planning an event, especially one with an auction, what would be the first thing that you would do?

Steve Lieberstein: I’ve done many different types of special events, from working on parts of a fashion show, to a - this is probably new - to a kite festival, to golf tournaments, to galas, and also, galas that have included charity auctions, to just strict auctions.

I think the first thing that you need to do, especially when planning a huge undertaking such as an auction, is you have to make sure that you start early, in terms of the planning process; make sure you have your objectives and financial goals set, and it’s important to begin establishing that leadership structure. You need to have a large circle of friends and acquaintances who can be asked for donations, or will be asking for donations of merchandise and services and goods, and you also need people, given that this is such a huge undertaking, who can help with the administration piece, because this is very intensive.

Sandra Sims: I’m curious, especially if it’s an event that maybe the organization has not planned before. Maybe they’re trying something new? How early do you think they should start planning?

Steve Lieberstein: That’s a good question. I like to look at things way far out. I like to start thinking six to nine months out, especially for a new event, definitely that much time, because it’s going to take a lot to put together. I’ll go into that, I can talk a little bit about how you keep that planning on schedule, but I think you really have to have all the details; if you have a theme; what type of items; who will have access to these items; what’s going to draw the most interest from the community?  These things don’t happen overnight, and the details will be important.

Sandra Sims: That’s definitely true and I know I’ve worked on some events where our planning timetable, the Christmas holidays and the New Year fell right in the middle of it, so we almost had to add an extra two months for planning, simply because January and December, people are not really wanting to come to committee meetings.

Steve Lieberstein: Yes, that’s tough.

Sandra Sims: Yes, so some of those things you have to take into consideration when you’re planning your schedule.

Steve Lieberstein: I agree, and if you do plan well, you’ll be able to overcome some of the things that always come up with the special events.

Sandra Sims: Oh, exactly. You can’t plan for every contingency, I’m sure. Things are always going to pop up. So you talked about setting your goals for the event, and then planning early. What are some other important factors for the event planners to focus on?

Steve Lieberstein: I definitely think what makes or breaks an event are the details. Paying attention to those details: if they’re not done correctly, the event could either fall apart, or if it’s done correctly you’re going to create an amazing product. This is an enormous opportunity; you don’t want to waste it, especially when you’re impressing prospects on your own turf.

Really being careful, and planning far ahead to overcome some of the crises that happen with special events; will you have enough time to make sure that you are able to work around that, in terms of engaging the committee, the details of decorating, making sure you have the proper attendance at the event, make sure you’re focussed on your budget, just in case you’re on a budget line; so it’s all in the details. You want people, after the event, just to be so inspired about your organization, that they’re going to want to continue to be involved with your organization afterwards.

Sandra Sims: Right, and sometimes it’s those little details that people walk away with, remembering.

Steve Lieberstein: Sure, it is. That one little thing, a cold meal, can make or break the event. Or, the food wasn’t cooked right; there are just so many … it’s hard to be perfect, but you have to strive to be as close to perfect as you can be.

A few of the benefits you’ll get from listening to this entire interview:

• Job descriptions for members of your planning team
• Ways to motivate and inspire volunteers
• How to make sure planning stays on schedule
• Key strategies that made one event that he planned so successful - raising over $100,000
• The biggest mistake nonprofit leaders can make with special events (and how you can avoid it)
• How to connect your special events with other fundraising strategies for a long term approach

You’ll get the entire one hour interview in both audio download and text transcript as part of Secrets of the Charity Auction Experts.

In addition to the 7 Essential Steps to Raising Money by Mail, the book she and I co-authored, she has written several other books. She has a long list of coaching and consulting clients. All of this of course after retiring from working full-time directly for nonprofit agencies.  In her own words:

I’ve worked in nonprofit fundraising for the past 10 years. In one of my first fundraising jobs, I started a direct mail program to raise money and gain new donors. I didn’t know much about how to do it, so I read everything I could get my hands on and I tested various letters. In just 4 years, I was raising over $300,000 annually with direct mail for my nonprofit organization. Believe me, I made a LOT of mistakes, but I kept working at it. And my Board was thrilled with my results!

Now you can learn from her experience on this special teleseminar, July 8th at 3PM EST.

You’ll learn how to implement a successful direct mail program for your organization. Once you hear these secrets, you can stop worrying about making mistakes when you send out fundraising letters. You’ll know just what you need to do to encourage your donors to give.

Here’s specifically what we’ll cover:

• What direct mail is and why you should use it for fundraising
• What should be in your direct mail plan
• Who should receive your letter
• Why you need to start planning NOW for this Fall
• What kind of results you can expect

Plus, Sandy will also introduce you to her new Secrets of Nonprofit Direct Mail Success mentoring program that starts on July 14th, 2009.

If you’re ready to raise some big money through the mail, then register for this free call.  We are limited to 100 150 lines live, so register now before they’re gone. Even if you can’t make it on July 8th, you’ll still get the audio recording. Remember, the call is free, so what do you have to lose?

Update: This was a great call - many direct mail tips for beginners to experienced fundraisers.  Sign up below and you’ll get the audio download!

Raise The Funds works with nonprofits to create an exciting, and unusual, fundraising event.  Michael C. Anthony performs his comedy hypnosis show “Hypnotized” all across the US.  The company provides set up for the show and your group provides the venue and ticket sales. View this recent post to see my favorite video from his performances: Laughter Brings People Together at Volunteer and Fundraising Events

The Restaurant.com card offered by eFundraising gives your supporters great deals on dining out.  This $50 Restaurant Gift Card is redeemable online for certificates to thousands of restaurants across the US.  This card provides a way to help families save money and your nonprofit to raise money. Cards are sold to your supporters for $20 each and your group keeps $10 each.  With a face value of $50 in dining out savings it’s a win-win all around.

• A Chance for Children Foundation, Los Angeles, California
• Portland Parks Foundation, Portland, Oregon
• Help4Galveston, Galveston, Texas
• Arkansas Rice Depot, Little Rock, Arkansas
• Community School of the Arts, Charlotte, North Carolina

On Day 3 the program helped people in my home state of Texas who were devastated by Hurricane Ike in October of last year. In fact this was the largest day of donations in the history of the Today Show’s Lend a Hand program: $540,652 in goods, services and financial gifts to Help4Galveston.

Donations came from Lowes, Ethan allen global, Home Depot, Energizer, John deere, JCPenney, Lutron Lighting Control, GE, Moen, Glidden, Crazy 8, LG, Scholastic, Swiffer, Sara Lee, Mr. Clean, Oral B, Office Depot, Weber Grills, Penske, and Pergo.

Here is the video of this great day of sharing:

Late June in West Texas — it’s hot without a cloud in the sky — and we had some tough work to do.  But you didn’t hear whining from us (not much anyway) and actually there was much chatter and laughter.

We didn’t all know one another beforehand but by sharing in this work we believed in and being open to new experiences, we soon started to bond. (It also helps to have a few class clowns.)

Shared laughter creates a bond of friendships. When people laugh together, they cease to be young and old, teacher and pupils, worker and boss. They become a single group of human beings. - W. Lee Grant

Laughter can also create a shared bond at a fundraising event.  From a stand up comic show like the one that benefits Children’s Hospital in Cleveland to a big-time event like Red Nose Day, comedy themed events can be fun and raise a lot of money for a cause.

In my research and interviews for Secrets of the Charity Auction Experts, the idea that people still want to go to charity events simply to have a good time came up several times.  After all, you can go to a movie any night of the week, but a comedy show, that’s for a good cause?  That’s different.

Speaking of different, here’s a fundraiser that is really unique. Michael C. Anthony performs his comedy hypnosis show “Hypnotized” as a fundraiser for many organizations.

The show is organized by the company Raise The Funds who works with nonprofits to set up the show, provides online ticket sales, prizes and other marketing help to promote the event.  The host provides the venue, including sound system, lighting, and a technician, a sales force to ensure maximum ticket sales and volunteers on the day of the show.  This partnership can result in thousands of dollars raised, at a fun event that people will be talking about for months and years to come.

This is one my favorite video clips from Michael’s stage shows.  He convinces his (hypnotized) volunteers that a belt is a deadly snake!

So how can laughter boost the morale of your organization? A shared volunteer experience that’s positive and builds friendships? Or even a fun fundraiser that encourages giving?

Yet even the most successful charity events can be challenging in their own way. Case in point: The Southern Utah Memory Walk Committee anticipated 200 participants on Saturday, November 8^th. Instead, almost 400 people came out for the event! As LuAnn Lundquist, Regional Manager for the Southern Utah Alzheimer’s Association, explained, “We were short on food and shirts, but long on enthusiasm and participation.”

The thing is, if you run out of food and t-shirts, those are good problems! It means your event surpassed even your own high expectations. Don’t beat yourself up if something like this happens at your event. Instead, appreciate the good problems and learn from them for next year.

For instance, if you can only offer continental breakfast for up to 200 people based on your budget and in-kind donations, avoid advertising that a free continental breakfast will be provided. Instead, say something like, “Limited breakfast snacks will be available, but eating before the event is encouraged.” That way, people will know that there’s a chance that they’ll get to snack on a banana or a bagel, but they won’t count on it for their morning meal.

The same thing goes for t-shirts. If you only have 200 to give away, instead of promising a t-shirt to anyone who donates $25 or more, simply say, “The first 200 people to arrive that donate $25 or more will receive a t-shirt” (adjust the details to your own event accordingly). This way, participants won’t count on getting that t-shirt, but they will hope for it and be motivated to show up early.

For most participants, these good problems are minor issues. Strong supporters are there for the cause, not the free stuff, and many already have too many charity event t-shirts to fit in their dresser drawers. But clarifying the details of your event will turn those good problems into solutions for next year.

What would you do in these kinds of situations?  Leave a comment in the box below.

That’s exactly what the wireless keypads from IML do.

The portability of the devices mean that attendees can make bids on auction items from anywhere at the event.  They don’t need to leave their seats to keep bidding.  All of this encourages more bids and can make a difference in funds raised at an event.

The technology can be used at event with an attendance of 100 to over 1000; it’s very flexible.  With this system you can forget the hassle of paper bidsheets too.

I met Ray Hansen earlier this year and got a demo of the devices.  I was instantly intrigued by what kind of impact this could have on fundraising events.  Since then the potential has been proven to me through some of the amazing charity events they’ve worked on.  Here are just a few:

• The Museum for African Art used the technology for the first time at their 25th Anniversary Gala. David Bowen, whose company produces the event every year, said, “Our guests really enjoyed the interactivity that the IML devices created, especially at dinner.  And our check-out has never been so smooth…for our guests or our staff. “
• Public radio station WFUV used the devices to run the auction at their 2nd Annual Spring Gala.  This photo shows one of the beautiful table displays along with the IML wireless devices right on the table, ready to take bids.
• The American Cancer Society in Chicago raised more this year at their Discovery Ball than last year.
• The Robin Hood Foundation used just the pledge management aspect of the technology to raise $72 million (yes, million!) to help the needy in New York City.

Recently I spoke with Ray by phone for an in-depth interview.  The complete audio with text transcript is included in Secrets of the Charity Auction Experts.  Here’s a 6 minute audio clip (with text version below) that gives you a great preview.

Sandra: Especially with your background and having that concern for non profits and the funds raised, what are some of the focus with this technology, some of the uses of it and some of the benefits?

Ray Hansen: The idea is behind the overall technology and I’ll focus it on where are we seeing successes. The idea is that you’re going to get as many people participating in the bidding process as possible. You also have the ability to extend the silent auction for a much longer period of time than you normally would, just on a logistical front. Inside the dinners, presentation you can keep that silent auction running, people can still be bidding on items. They don’t have to get up from their seats; they don’t have to leave the bar; they don’t have to leave their social area; they can still talk to people. The whole time they can be getting updates about their silent auction items and bidding and continuing to bid on them.

We’ve seen a number of areas that have benefited from this. From everyone from museums to private schools, public schools, every type of event that’s out there would benefit from using the system. It’s really a diverse group of people or silent auctions or gala events that would benefit from using our system.

Sandra: Great, so I’m just thinking about if I was at one of these events, basically it’s a hand held device and it looks a little bit bigger than a cell phone and you don’t have one per person do you? It’s maybe one per table, or how does that work?

Ray Hansen: We’re really flexible with that. Generally we say one device for every two people. Everyone who comes in will have their registration list beforehand and we will burn them a bidding card, so at registration they’ll get their bidding card and they can walk up to any device that’s set out on the dinner table; set out at the silent auction area, really anywhere and plug their bidding card into the device and really start bidding away.

Sandra: How do they know what items are up for the auction?

Ray Hansen: There’s a couple of different ways. We still encourage for table top displays of the silent auction items so that if people still want to see and touch the items and get the full descriptions; where our system plugs in similar to a PowerPoint laptop, will plug into any of the audio visual components that are in the room, whether it’s a big screen, plasma screen what have you and then we create these movies essentially that have the silent auction items scrolling through and it gives some really important information.

First it tells you how much money has currently been raised in the silent auction. It also tells you per item what’s the highest bid and who has the highest bid on that silent auction?

Sandra: Okay, so on the screen it will scroll to, say there’s a car, and so it will have the description, it will have the item number and then what the top bid is. Someone will pick up the device and put in their card and then what do they do from there?

Ray Hansen: From there they would enter the lot number and then they would press the enter key and then a brief description of the item would show up on the little LCD screen and would also tell what the highest bid is and now if there’s bidding commenced it will tell you what the next bid has to be based on those bid increments. The person will hit the enter button again and put their bid in and send the bid.

Sandra: Right and is it wireless, automatic.

Ray Hansen: Completely wireless. It’s updated instantly. Both on the device and on the display screens. I will say that on the display screen though, these screens are completely customisable, so if you wanted to display ten lot items at one time, it’s easy for us to do that and then in addition if you want to just highlight one specific lot silent auction item, it’s very easy for us to do that as well.

Sandra: Okay, so when you and I were talking earlier, you described how this automatic feature and the fact the silent auction organisers can get instant feedback, they know exactly how much has been raised. What items have gotten a bid and what items haven’t and so you told me a little bit about how that information can be used to then further more bidding. Do you want to talk about that a little bit?

Ray Hansen: I will. First of all, our technology it is, it’s technology right. There’s always going to be that need for…that yin and the yang between man versus machine. Our people are there watching the silent auction update live and we always encourage for there to be an open dialogue and open communication between our onsite people and those who are Mc-ing or of course the host of the evening. That way if we see a bidding war break out, we can highlight that to the MC; we can put it up on screen. He can bring attention to it and conversely if things are going bad in the silent auction or the goals aren’t being reached, we have that information right in front of us so that we can communicate that to the MC, so he can get back in front of the donors and start helping to pull some of that money out of their pockets and get it back in the silent auction or the life pledge.

Sandra: So you’re not leaving the funds raised to chance. You know minute by minute how it’s going.

Ray Hansen: Yes, literally second by second updates and there’s none of this at the end of the auction where you’re tallying up the highest bids and the disappointment. At least while you’ve invested so much money in the silent auction getting the people there; sending out all the invitations, all the effort that you’ve put into this, at least it gives you that actual item right then and there, so at least you have a chance to get an attempt to pull some more money out of people.

The complete 30 minute audio interview and transcript are included in the Secrets of the Charity Auction Experts seminar series.

This concept was one of the biggest take-away lessons from my interview with Dawn Rose-Sohnly. She has been serving as an auctioneer and auction assistant (or “ring person”) for more than 15 years.  Along with her sister Karen, she has helped raise millions of dollars for charitable organizations.

Here’s a short (2 min.) excerpt from our interview:

Sandra Sims: What can a non profit do to actually make the auctioneer’s job easier?

Dawn Rose-Sohnly: I think communication is key. If the auctioneer is new to the non-profit. Definitely point out key bidders. Explain the room set up. Are there key bidders that are sitting in the front versus sitting in the back?

The non-profit organization should always hire a professional bid assistant to encourage bidding and excitement to the prospective bidders. I think ring people are a key component to an auction.

Sandra Sims: You’ve mentioned “ring people” and “auction assistants.” What are those positions and what do they do?

Dawn Rose-Sohnly: Basically, it’s the same term. Ring people are the individuals that you see in the audience that are encouraging bidders to bid. They use a lot of enthusiasm. They’re very hard workers at what they do. They’re trained, they’re professionals and I have seen people that say I’m not going to bid anymore and that ring person will get in front of them and that person will bid five times after that. It adds the excitement and enthusiasm to an auction. On all of our charity auctions we always use ring people.

Sandra Sims: Give me an example if you can of what a ring person might do to encourage that bidding?

Dawn Rose-Sohnly: A ring person might go up to him and you’re working with the public so you’ve got to realize your space in between that bidder and it’s really reading the public, but you might get in front of that person and say you may want to bid one more time. This is a great cause, it’s going to a great non-profit organization; if you bid one more time, the other person may not stop bidding and you could be the high bidder. That might be one technique of how they do it.

Sandra Sims: A lot of it like you said is reading the audience?

Dawn Rose-Sohnly: Yes, definitely. Over the years I have been able to tell which bidders are going to bid and which ones do not. It’s body language, it’s looking at their eyes. I don’t know, I guess I’ve just got that knack because I can tell when somebody is going to bid or when somebody is going to hesitate and I can have somebody tell me even as a ring person on the benefits that I’ve worked, they’re not going to bid one more time, but I know that doesn’t mean no. I can always get them to bid additionally.

Dawn went on to describe the benefits of having ring people and several successful auctions where assistants were key to driving up the fund total of the event.

During our one hour interview Dawn also shared:

How to choose a great leader for the auction committee chairperson

A success story of an auction that raised $78,000 with only 40 items!

How to divide up item acquisition & other event planning tasks amongst committee members

How to set minimum bids and bid increments

How to determine which items go in the live auction vs. the silent auction

How to add revenue to your event with a “bidding frenzy” and a special appeal

What to look for when hiring an auctioneer so that your auction is as successful as possible

Success tips from Dawn’s favorite charity auction that raises more than $100,000 every year

The complete one hour audio interview and transcript are included in the Secrets of the Charity Auction Experts seminar series. 

Food banks, other nonprofits, corporations and communities are stepping up to fill the need.  Here are some stories of some groups that are fundraising, collecting food donations and publicizing the cause.  If you work with a food bank or are interested in helping maybe some of these stories will give you some ideas of what you can do in your community.

Feeding America Serves Nationwide

Currently Feeding America (formerly known as America’s Second Harvest) is benefiting from multiple fundraising and awareness programs.

This season I’ve been addicted to the reality show The Biggest Loser and this week was its big finale.  The reality show teamed with Subway and General Mills all season long for the Pound For Pound Challenge.  The public was invited to register and for every pound lost, General Mills donates 14¢ to Feeding America.  You can still participate up til May 31st.

Bloomberg reports that Kellogg Boosts Cereal Donation as Food Bank Demand Jumps 30%:

Kellogg Co., the world’s largest cereal maker, will donate $10 million worth of Rice Krispies, Frosted Mini-Wheats and other products to U.S. food banks to help meet a 30 percent jump in demand. The 3.5 million pounds of cereal is in addition to the 25 million pounds of food and $500,000 in cash Kellogg gives annually to Feeding America

In an upcoming campaign Beyoncé and Hamburger Helper partner with the goal of helping Feeding America deliver more than 3.5 million meals to local food banks.  On May 26th the My Hometown Helper campaign will announce more information about concert promotions and a box top based donation system.

Another corporate campaign comes from KRAFT.  It asks for the participation of website visitors in order to determine how many boxes of Macaroni and Cheese will be donated.  The site is called Share a Little Comfort and all you have to do is click the “donate a free box” button.  Coupons for KRAFT Macaroni and Cheese products are there, ready to print out too.

Communities Rally to Help Local Food Banks

Michelle Obama and Jill Biden recently visited the Capital Area Food Bank in DC. In this video provided Mrs. Obama and representatives from Feeding America address the crowd of volunteers.

The Stamp Out Hunger nationwide drive from the National Association of Letter Carriers was held on Saturday May 9th. In Oklahoma mail carriers collected more than 630,000 pounds of food to benefit the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma. This was up from 480,000 pounds collected in 2008.

At the sixth annual Dish: Cuisine for Change in Minneapolis, Minnesota Second Harvest Heartland raised $366,900 to fight hunger in the 59 counties served by the organization.  The first-ever Hunger Heroes Director’s Award was presented to David Nasby, former vice president of the General Mills Foundation and founder of the nation’s first food bank network.

The Houston Food Bank recently benefited from a crawfish boil. (Crawfish boils are popular events in south Texas and Louisiana.  I’m not much on the critters.  I think I’ll stick with Catfish or Shrimp myself!)

Food banks in Utah are benefiting from the state’s new grocery rescue program.  Stores such as Albertson’s locations statewide donate food that is still good but close to sell by date.

In a story titled Filling the Void, Fundraising Success magazine profiles the Food Bank For New York City’s stepped up efforts to provide wholesome food to struggling New Yorkers.  This article profiles how they raised the funds needed to fuel their mission.

Last summer the food bank in my area planned a creative way in involve those who benefited from their services and got some great publicity at the same time.  Over 150 children who get nutritious meals at local Kids Cafes wrote an essay about how the program helped them and their family in the Kids Cafe Essay Writing Contest.

Another way that the Wichita Falls Area Food Bank connects with the community is through small groups of volunteers.  The food bank periodically delivers cases of food supplies to area community centers and churches.  Then volunteers prepare the sacks of food that will be given to at-risk children to take home over the weekend.

When I’ve participated it’s been a fun, social time for those involved. Inevitable the conversation naturally turns to the children in need of the food and how much of a help the PowerPack program is.  In around 30 minutes we have all the packs done and a sense of accomplishment that we helped in some way.

Through a role playing simulation residents of Ames, IA got a better understanding of what it would be like to live in poverty. The program was planned with the help of Bethesda Community Food Pantry and Iowa State University Extension.  The simulation gave participants an identity to assume for the night, either as a child living in poverty, someone newly unemployed, a disabled person or a senior citizen.

Do you know of any great fundraising, food drive or publicity efforts on behalf of food banks?  Post a link in the comments below.

Here are seven guidelines to follow when raising funds for individuals:

1. Research all of your options

When a family is facing a financial hardship due to a serious medical situation, it is important to do some research before jumping into a fundraising effort. After exhausting health insurance options find out about other organizations that may be able to help:

1. Hospital assistance - Speak to social services at the hospital who may be aware of financial resources, foundations and sources of financial help.
2. Nonprofit health care - Is there a nonprofit hospital or clinic where the patient can get all or part of the care needed?  Speak to your physician about referrals to appropriate facilities.
3. Government agencies - Your contact at the hospital may be able to refer you to government agencies that can provide services.
4. Nonprofit organizations - Contact local charities and food banks that may offer “stop gap” assistance. There are some charities that are specifically set up to provide financial assistance for medical care. For example, Heroes for Children provides assistance to families within the state of Texas, with children (0-22 yrs of age) battling cancer.
5. Family stay - Find out if there is a Ronald McDonald House or other family stay facility near the hospital which has free or low cost accommodations.  This can ease the financial burden when our of town hospital stays are required.

2. Be aware of legal issues

Donations that are given to an individual and not a registered charity are not tax deductible. It is best to let people know upfront that their donation is going to an individual and therefore there is no tax benefit for them.

Friends, family, co-workers and extended acquaintances may be willing to give out of pocket just because they care about the person and not be as concerned about tax benefits. People who are not acquainted with the individuals involved may be reluctant to donate to someone who is not a registered non profit organization.

If possible, partner with a non profit organization that can receive designated funds for the individual. Then donations can be designated as tax deductible by those who make donations.

The Transplant Fund helps transplant and catastrophic injury patients afford critical but uninsured medically related expenses through fundraising guidance, patient support and resources, as well as financial assistance.  The Children’s Organ Transplant Association is another organization that provides financial support for transplant patients. A local community foundation may also be able to help manage your fund account.  Just Google the words community foundation plus your city name to find one near you.

3. Understand what motivates donors

Many people will want to make sure that all of their donation goes directly to help the person in need. Donation request letters are especially good for this reason, as there are very little expenses unlike events and product sales.

Also realize that fundraising may not be appropriate in every situation. Medical expenses must be quite extensive to warrant fundraising. For example, asking for help when a child gets a cast for a broken arm will not likely motivate people to donate because the need is not as great as a life threatening illness.

4. Appeal to individuals, not businesses

When seeking donations for an event appeal to individuals rather than directly to businesses. Corporations are usually concerned with making sure their donation is going to an organization that has government oversight, as well as a group that has the tax deductible donation benefits.

Your circle of friends may be able to get donations from their place of business since they have influence with their employers that outsiders do not have.  So try to appeal to businesses through their employees.

5. Fundraising events rally the community

Fundraising events such spaghetti dinners can also be a good way to raise money.  As with all fundraising events it is important to get just about every thing donated, and even more so when fundraising for individuals - food, location, decorations, and prizes. Survey your extended circle of contacts and ask them to donate supplies and prizes.

6. Make it easy for people to donate

Finally, make it as easy for people to donate. Offer as many ways as possible for people to help the family that is in need of money for their medical expenses. Explain how donations can be made and include contact information on all materials.

• Set up a separate bank account just for donations
• In letter appeals give the name and address of the bank location(s) in case people want to make donations directly at the bank
• In letter requests include a pre-addressed envelope for those who would like to donate by mail
• Fundraising events offer multiple opportunities for people to donate anonymously such as donation boxes, raffles, and opportunities to “round up” ticket purchases.

Example:

Your Support is Greatly Appreciated!

Three Ways to Help:

1. Make a deposit to the bank account set up especially to help defray medical costs. Go to National Bank, 1500 Travis Street, Anytown USA and let them know that you would like to make a deposit to the account of Jane Smith.

2. Mail your donation with check made out to Jane Smith to 7859 Oak Strett, Anytown USA

3. Attend our spaghetti dinner event on January 24, 2006. Tickets are $7 for adults and $3 for children 12 and under. Besides the dinner there will also be raffles, games and other fun activities for the whole family. If you have any questions about the fundraising efforts to help Jane Smith, please contact her friend Sally Johnson at 210-555-1234.

7. Online fundraising to reach out of town supporters

One way to make donating easy for those who want to help is to set up a way to accept donations online.  Then people who live near and far can donate securely online.  If you are working with a nonprofit to manage your fund then speak with them about this first.  They may have an online donation system already set up.  If they don’t then you’ll need to work with them to set one up.

While there are many online donation providers, many will only work with registered charities.  So this is a question you need to ask straight away when researching these options.  One provider that helps people raising funds for individuals is GiveForward.  This system will let you raise funds for any cause, including medical expenses.  One family’s efforts to raise funds online for a kidney transplant was recently featured in the Chicago Tribune.

Conclusion

When raising funds for individuals keep these factors in mind. Exhaust all usual financial aid services before going the fundraising route. Be mindful of legal and financial implications of fundraising, and plan fundraising activities have the lowest cost and most impact so that funds raised can go directly to those persons in need.