LLL in the USA WORLD BREASTFEEDING WEEK CELEBRATION

FUNDRAISING IDEAS

Events

Sponsors for Various Aspects of Events
by Brenda Bandy, LLL of Manhattan, KS

LLL of Manhattan, Kansas held a World Walk for Breastfeeding on a Saturday in September 2003 from 10:00-12:00 in the morning. Families gathered in City Park for free pony rides and a moon jump. We walked as a group around the park, carrying signs (i.e., Breastfeeding is Best; La Leche League, Offering Information and Support). Signs, donated by a local Realtor, covered with poster board and attached balloons, were placed along the street and invited the public to stop by for free rides and to participate in LLL's World Walk for Breastfeeding.

T-shirt sponsors - We asked businesses to sponsor the walk in return for printing their logo on the back of the WW t-shirts. We did this only on the adult t-shirts, not the children's, as some parents didn't like the idea of using our children for advertising. We charged $100 a spot and guaranteed they would be the only business of that type on the shirt. Moms in our group helped come up with a list of breastfeeding supportive businesses. The Leader approached each business, asking for the sponsorship and explaining the event. The great part about this idea is that after you cover the cost of the t-shirts and printing, all additional sponsorships are profit. For 25 t-shirts, we needed only three sponsors to cover the costs. We easily fit ten logos on the back. You could fit more and even put them on the sleeves. We then gave the t-shirts to walkers who raised more than $50 in pledges and to Group members who worked the day of the event. Remaining t-shirts were sold for $8. We sold the children's t-shirts for $7, but ended up having several left over. Next time, I would print logos on children's shirts too, to cover their expense, or offer them only on a pre-paid basis.

Kid's rides sponsors - We asked local businesses to sponsor a moon jump and a pony ride for $100 per ride. In return, their logo was displayed on the sign in front of the ride. The cost of renting the moon jump was covered by the sponsorship and the pony ride was donated, so its sponsorship money was all profit. We had a volunteer to be responsible for the ride in one-hour shifts.

I should mention that we were flexible on the cost of the sponsorships. For example, for a new business just starting out we charged only $75 for a t-shirt spot. One owner had two businesses, so we charged him $150 for two spots. We also offered a "package deal." For $150 they could sponsor a ride and be on the t-shirts.

In addition to the signs by the rides and the t-shirts, sponsoring businesses were listed on a large "Thank You" poster display at the event and mentioned in the "thank you" letter to the editor in the local newspaper. Of the $1630 raised, $750 of the total was from business sponsors.