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Fundraiser of the Month
Virgin London Marathon 2010
Our Virgin London Marathon runners are an inspiring bunch. Every month, catch up with what some of our particularly special runners have been up to, and get some ideas for yourself about how to be a top fundraiser!
February 2010
Whizz-Kidz is delighted to announce Omar as Fundraiser of the Month! Omar has tried lots of different events as his approach for his fundraising. What's more, he's found he's really enjoying organising them! Find out what he's been up to...
Omar
1. How have you gone about your fundraising?
My wife and I decided early on to organise a couple of events to supplement the usual emails to colleagues, clients, friends and family. Our two ideas were a wine tasting evening; and a 5-a-side football competition.
We held our wine tasting in mid-February. We decided to have it at home because we thought our friends would get more out of the event if it was relatively small, and didn’t have a “corporate” feel. We contacted a few specialist wine tasting companies, but found it would be hard to raise a meaningful amount of money if we went down that route. They simply charged too much for small events at home. Instead, we simply asked one of the guys from our local Majestic Wine, where the level of knowledge and passion for wine from all the staff has always impressed us. That worked fantastically because the guy who came was great fun, taught us a lot and, because we were raising money for a charity, kindly agreed to do it for free. This meant the only cost of the event was the wine we drank. In the end we had 16 people who paid £25 per head, of which an amazing £20 per head, or £320 in total, went directly to Whizz-Kidz. We had a “Guess the Price” competition and a blind tasting, and gave away a bottle of champagne to the winner. Everyone had a great time learning about wine amongst a group of friends. It really was a super night.
We plan to hold the football competition just before the Marathon in April. We have organised four teams, one girls’ and three boys’, and will play a round robin tournament on a Sunday afternoon at our local sports centre. Lots of friends will bring their kids so, again, we hope it will be a fun afternoon in its own right. We will charge £20 per head of which at least £15 per head, or £300 in total, will go directly to Whizz-Kidz.
2. What trick have you found to be most successful for fundraising?
People are bombarded with requests for donations these days, so we felt it was important to offer something in return for their generosity, rather than just asking bluntly for cash. This means you have to think hard of things your target group of friends might enjoy doing, even if they weren’t donating to a charity. If it’s a fun night/afternoon out anyway, the donation is painless! Everyone who came to the wine tasting told us they enjoyed it in its own right, not just because it was an event for Whizz-Kidz.
3. Have people been responsive with you beginning your fundraising well in advance of the London Marathon?
The beauty of raising money for Whizz-Kidz is people immediately want to support it, and therefore have no problem getting behind you. We explained to everyone that the charity relies heavily on Marathon sponsorship and that it makes a difference if they choose to give early. It’s definitely not an approach that most people are used to, but if you are careful to explain fully why it makes a difference to Whizz-Kidz they quickly understand. The response so far has been really encouraging.
4. What would be your top fundraising tip to all the other Whizz-Kidz runners?
Combine targeted events with direct requests for cash. Target groups of people carefully and think hard about what they enjoy doing; then try to keep your costs down by making sure venue owners etc know you are organising something for Whizz-Kidz. Doing small, focussed events in this way will help you raise meaningful sums that will accelerate your progress towards your target. It also gives you a good excuse to get together with your friends! It can take quite a bit of organising, but we have found it incredibly rewarding.
5. What motivated you to run and fundraise for Whizz-Kidz?
Once I discovered the work Whizz-Kidz does, it was easy to get motivated! We have two young children of our own, and are always conscious how lucky we are that they are both healthy and well. We think it is really important that we help needy children in our community where we can. At the end of the day, fundraising for Whizz-Kidz is easy and a pleasure, because it is really just a question of making people aware of what the charity does.
I would like to make a regular donation!
As an ambassador I can highlight the need of the provision of suitable mobility equipment for children and make others aware of the opportunities available to young people in wheelchairs