PolioPlus Fundraising Ideas List: 12 Events

The goal is to give all Rotary Clubs an opportunity to get involved in their choice of one or two of 12 activities that are pre-designated on a website. A majority of these ideas are on focusing the energy outside of the club while a few will be focused on internal club activities.

Some of the suggested activities include:

1. Ask Campaign—Use the vast resources of Rotarians to raise money through viral marketing

• Ask Rotarians (and those afflicted with Polio) to e-mail lists, post on Facebook and other social media sites the need and the request – send people to the website to make donation.
• Gives Rotarians who are not tech savvy to do the same process with a letter (sample on the website).
• Business Ask Campaign – similar materials will be available on the site to ask local businesses to be involved in the largest single campaign for Rotary in Colorado in the history of this movement.  Marketing opportunities need to be added here.

2. Provide a Purple Pinkie Project in the local elementary schools where children donate to the cause (as supported through a letter home to the parents) and they go home with a “purple pinkie” as a reminder of the work that has been done and to educate our young people about Polio and its past

• Use the coloring books
• Good media event!

3. Bell Ringers at the local grocery store to raise local funds, pass out leaflets about the website

4. Organize a movie night with a local theatre—part of proceeds go to Polio (these could be done regionally on October 24 (or the week of October 24)

5. Create auction for Polio 

• Create an online/offline auction with specific items that the local community would want – trip to a country still battling Polio for a family to donate their time to give Polio vaccinations, trip to another destination, large ticket items like computers, cameras, video recorders, etc.  These items could be donated from local sponsors.
• Create an online auction specifily for Rotarians with items they might want – trip to the RI convention, dinner with District Governor and wife, dinner out for the entire club, club t-shirts announcing their support of Polio Plus campaign for every member, Paul Harris points, Rotary gear, a shelterbox to donate, etc.

6. “Skip a Meal” at Rotary on Polio Awareness Week—Donate those funds to the effort.  This is a very simple thing to do and a potentially great media promotion

• One club with average of 25 members @ $10 per meal = $250
• 60 clubs with average of 25 members = $ 90,000 donation
• If every club in District 5450 did this on one week the total raised would be $33,000

7. Host an event at your local Applebee’s (or other eating establishment with similar policies) where they allow clubs to do a fundraiser in their restaurant.  The club members volunteer their time and the Applebee’s charges /person for the use of the restaurant for your fundraiser.  In exchange you can make a pancake breakfast for your guests and charge $5 (or more per person) to make money.

8. Host Wii Fit event for Polio Plus—Charge per person price for time allotted at event.  Have Wii Fit challenges and play-offs.

9. Coin collecting cans on every table—Clubs raising the most per member honor of having raised the most, or some Polio Campaign award

10. Clubs use their current fundraisers to raise additional awareness about the “Our Gift To The World” campaign and add one additional element to raise money for the Polio Plus program:

• Clubs could donate a portion of their overall program fees raised
• Sell a specific auction item for Polio
• Add an element to the event that is Polio specific (i.e.—coin collection boxes)
• Set-up a display at their club

11. “Pass the drop” campaign—Encourage one club to start passing a collection bucket to each member for a donation of $ ___________.   One drop in the bucket (one donation) signifies one drop of polio vaccine.  After each club member has donated, club passes the full bucket on to another club.  (Each President could transfer the bucket to the next club).

12. Create a “raffle” for a big item and sell tickets on-line or at the club level.