FUNDRAISING 101
Individual/Team Fundraising Ideas:
 Sign up online & send emails to friends, family, neighbors, colleagues, asking for
donations.
 Send letters (include a self addressed return envelope) & send to friends, family,
neighbors, colleagues, asking for donations. Keep letter to 1 page & include your
story of why you Relay.
 Sell luminaria outside local store, shopping center (w/ permission, of course)
 Sell a luminaria letters of “HOPE” or “CURE” to be constructed of luminaria &
displayed in bleachers during luminaria ceremony at Relay – cost $250/letter.
 Shirt off your back – donors pay money to have you include your name on a tshirt that you wear at Relay.
 Scrapbook crop party – charge entry fee & raise even more by auctioning items.
 “Flocking flamingos” – place a flamingo on a neighbor’s yard w/ a sign/banner
containing instructions stating, “You’ve been flocked by [insert name] for the
American Cancer Society Relay For Life. For a donation of $20, the bird will fly
away in 24 hours to a different yard of your choice. Please call [insert phone
number].” You can also sell flamingo insurance to neighbors who don’t want to
get flocked! Check out: http://karenskids.blip.tv/file/240003/ .
 Hold a yard sale – dispose of some of your former “treasures” while raising
money for Relay!
 Quilt making – charge a fee to people who want to make a square in
honor/memory of someone & once completed, auction the quilt off at Relay.
 Restaurants to the rescue – ask a local restaurant to donate a portion of a day’s
proceeds to Relay or offer to have your team bus or wait tables in exchange for
donations to Relay.
 Hair cuts – ask a local salon to sponsor a cut-a-thon.
 Pizza box fundraiser – ask local pizza shop to post a flyer you create to sell
luminaria on each of their pizza boxes w/ the flyer to be returned to you w/ a
donation &/or luminaria order – be sure to include why you are raising money &
your contact information.
 Set up a bowl-a-thon – you can even collect $1 per pin knocked down!
 Wine/beer/whiskey tasting – be sure to check/adhere to liquor liability laws.
 Hold a pancake breakfast.
 Table tents – ask local restaurants to display table tents that you create explaining
Relay & asking for donations – be sure to include why you are raising money &
your contact information.
 Hold a BINGO game to raise money for Relay.
 Set-up a Block party & collect donations for Relay.
 Hold a hoagie sale.
 Shaved head – agree to shave hair if fundraising goal is reached.
 Hold a spaghetti dinner.
 Hold a beef n’ beer – be sure to follow all liquor liability laws.
 Zoot suit party – hold a swing dance party for Relay.
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Workplace Fundraising Ideas:
 Dress-down day – charge $5.00/person to allow participants to dress down for a
designated day.
 Penny wars – compete between departments to collect the most pennies (positive
points) w/i allotted time period . . . silver change (negative points) can be used to
sabotage rival departments as it will be counted against pennies collected!
 Look into your company’s matching funds policy.
 Have your company auction off a reserved/premier parking spot for a day, week
or more.
 Brown bag lunch – have employees bring lunch to work & donate money they
would have spent on lunch to Relay.
 Auction off an extra vacation day.
 Auction off a chance to change places w/ the boss for a day.
 “No bake” sale – coworkers pay so that they do not have to buy baked goods.
 50/50
Student Fundraiser Ideas:
 Set up a school dance w/ all money raised to go to Relay (you can also hold a
bakesale at the dance to raise even more)!
 Penny wars (see above).
 Donut days – have donuts donated & sell them at school
 Hat, pajama day – collect donations from students so they can wear hats or PJs to
school for a day.
 Cigarette machine demolition – charge money for people to take a swing at the
machine (remove the glass first & make sure it’s safe).
 Hold a bake sale
 Hold a car wash
 Challenge school principal to paint his/her hair purple if a certain level of
fundraising is reached.
 Bag lunch day – have students bring bagged lunches & donate money they would
have spent on lunch to Relay.
 Babysitter/Petsitter/Lawn service to raise money for Relay.
 Quarters for a Cure – collect enough quarters from students to line the school
track – this will be $1,000!
 Balloon day - Sell Relay balloons with messages attached for $2 each. Take
orders in advance & then deliver the balloon messages at a later date.
 Student/faculty basketball game – organize a benefit game w/ donations to be
given to Relay.
 Hold a concert, recital, school play w/ admission price to be donated to Relay.
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Onsite Fundraiser Ideas:
(be sure to report your onsite fundraisers to Aimee Belgard, aimee_relay@verizon.net or
Megan Sinz, megan.sinz@cancer.org before Relay so we don’t have competing onsite
fundraisers)
 Participate in Miss Relay Competition – chose a male from your team to enter the
“Miss Relay” beauty competition at Relay and collect monetary votes during the
judging process.
 Gurney rides – bring a gurney to Relay & collect donations for trips around the
track on the gurney.
 Sell/auction off gift baskets, sports memorabilia, etc.
 Face painting
 Massages
 Caricatures
 Baked goods
 Hole in one contest
 Dance lessons – offer dance lessons at your campsite for a donation.
 Feed the Relayers – sell food to hungry Relayers as they circle the track.
 General store – sell items that Relayers may have forgotten to bring to Relay, i.e.
toothbrushes, toothpaste, toilet paper, sunscreen, extra socks, rain gear, etc.
 Hollywood snapshot – get a cardboard cutout of a celebrity & take photos of
Relayers w/ your “celebrity” for a donation.
 Midway games – host games at your campsite for donations.
Additional General Information:
 Don’t forget to thank everyone who gives you a donation.
 Work with your team mates as well as other teams to generate more support for
your fundraising ideas.
 Be sure to thank your teammates for all of their fundraising efforts.
 Don’t forget to ask . . . most of the time, people who don’t donate just haven’t
been asked!
 All donations are tax deductible& checks should be made payable to The
American Cancer Society.
 For other great fundraising and Relay ideas, visit www.relayforlife.org
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