Ideas of the Month
February
Valentine's Day
The tradition on February 14 is to shower candy, gifts, and flowers on loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. Share the love in the name of AIDS Walk New York to benefit people living with HIV/AIDS.
"Sponsor Me" Valentines: Decorate personalized Valentine cards with information about why you're participating in AIDS Walk New York, your fundraising goal, and instructions to sponsor you (Go to aidswalk.net/newyork click and type in my name next to “Sponsor a Walker.”)
Chocolate Tasting Event: Throw a chocolate tasting event and charge a fee to attend! This is a creative twist on your traditional wine tasting event, and is sure to attract a crowd! Best of all, it's family-friendly!
A Rose for a Rose: Sell single roses or flower bouquets in your school or workplace. You can even provide chocolate roses to send a more platonic message.
Solicit donations: Simply ask people to “have a heart” and donate to your cause. You can give donors a small token, such as heart-shaped candy, in return.
Singing Telegram! Have a friend who just loves the spotlight? Use their singing chops to your fundraising advantage, and charge a $10 donation to send them singing a love song to embarrass friends, family, and co-workers on Valentine’s Day!
Award Shows:
From the Oscars to the Golden Globes to the Grammys, Hollywood is abuzz with award shows this month! Whichever award show you happen to favor, turn it into a fundraiser! For some extra fun, pass around a stiletto heel to collect donations!
Party Down: Throw a party on an award show night and charge an entrance fee. Make up games to play throughout the night, like “The Red Carpet Best/Worst Dressed.” Make a list of the stars that will be there, and have your guests rate their outfits. Announce the best and worst dressed at the end of the night.
Dress Up: Why should the stars be the only ones who get dolled up? Have friends dress up as his/her favorite celebrity, and the best dressed will receive an AIDS Walk donation.
Feeling Lucky? Have a "Predict the Winners" contest with a $10 entry! Print out the ballot of the award show and ask participants to guess the winners. Once the award winners are announced, the person with the highest rate of correct answers receives half the pot of money. The other half goes to your AIDS Walk fundraising efforts!
March
St. Patrick's Day
Sell Something Green! Help your co-workers and friends get festive. Buy shamrock fabric and sell custom headbands or belts; offer a green manicure with some fun nail polish; or sell your homemade green Rice Crispy treats!
Inspire the Luck of the Irish: Host a four-leaf clover hunt. Invite friends and families outdoors to search for real clovers in a field filled with shamrocks. For an indoor alternative, hide chocolate clovers in an office space or home and have all the kids (and adults, too!) make a dash for ‘em!
Candy Jar Guessing Game: Get a decorative jar and fill it with candy. Have participants donate $2 to guess the total amount of candy in the jar. The person who comes closest to the actual number wins the candy, and you get the money!
Spring Cleaning: Spring starts on March 20. Encourage your friends and neighbors to clean out their place, gather up items that they’d be willing to sell, and bring their items to your place for a “stoop sale.” Post signs letting all your customers know that proceeds benefit AIDS Walk New York. If you don’t have a stoop, offer to clean up a friend or family member’s home for a donation.
March Madness Basketball Pool
Do you get crazed over college basketball too? Then why not turn it into an AIDS Walk fundraising opportunity. Start a bracket pool with your friends, family, and coworkers for March Madness. Charge $10 per entry, print and pass out the brackets, and set up a point system for each correct team chosen (for example: First Round=1 point, Second Round= 2 Points, Third Round= 3 Points, Fourth Round=4 Points, Fifth Round=6 Points, Sixth Round=10 Points.) The winner gets the pot donated to their AIDS Walk fundraising total!
April
Earth Day: Celebrate the Earth on April 22. Put out recycling receptacles with information about your involvement with AIDS Walk. The money from the recycling benefits your AIDS Walk fundraising efforts.
Rain, Rain, Don't Go Away: Use the April showers to your advantage. On a rainy night (check the forecast in advance so you can plan), have your friends over for dinner and a movie. Charge admission and cook something comforting while you watch your favorite flick.
In-office Fundraising: Get the office excited about AIDS Walk with a theme dress up day, like “Luck o’ The Irish”, “Nerd Day”, or anything else you can think of! Everyone wears their best leprechaun outfit or best nerdy attire, pocket protectors and all. Each person pays an entry fee for the costume contest and the office votes! The winner gets the total collected put towards their personal fundraising goal.
Pie Smash: How about a pie smash where a company executive is the target? Make it a department fundraising challenge: the department that raises the most funds during the week gets this once in a lifetime opportunity to smash their boss in the face with a whip cream pie (Lightly! Of course!). And if your boss is nice enough to participate, ask if they are willing to match the funds raised by the winning department. You’ll reach your fundraising goals in no time! And you’ll laugh a lot as well!
May
Flower Sale: April showers bring May flowers. The city is in bloom, so why not make a fundraiser out of it? Sell fresh flowers in the lobby of your building. Plan ahead and post flyers advertising your fundraiser in advance. That way, everyone will know to have cash handy that day! You can even offer to make personal deliveries within the building for an additional donation.
Carbo-Loading Party: The night before the AIDS Walk, make lots of pasta and invite people over to carbo-load for the 10k walk. They can sponsor you for a plate of pasta! This is a great opportunity to get excited for the AIDS Walk, and get donations from your hungry friends.
