Fundraising idea

[Lucy]

When we decided we wanted to upgrade our outdoor space, we quickly realized that we did not have the money for what we wanted to do.  The parent board of our school organized a parent-staff social at one of the parent's homes.  It was an evening party, adults only, with food, drinks and dancing to a live band headlined by one of our parents.  In preparation for the party each teacher asked the children in her class, individually, what they would like to have on the play yard if they could have anything in the world.  We also polled the teachers.  Then, on the night of the party, when people arrived they received name tags with their names, and with their child's wish (i.e. "a kitten", "a spaceship", "superman and batman", "mommy", "a mud pit", etc.)  We didn't tell anyone what the quotes meant (which provoked a lot of fun guessing, speculation and served as a good conversation starter!) until halfway through the evening when we revealed the meaning of the words on their name tags.  After everyone got a good laugh we talked about the importance of outdoor play, and how we wanted to provide the children with a rich and rewarding experience both indoors and outdoors.  We then "officially" announced that we would be starting a fundraising campaign to raise the money we need and we hoped that everyone would contribute as they could.  Afterwards we would send out letters soliciting a donation with pictures of the fun equipment we wanted to buy.  We are hoping to get our playground installed this summer!

[playmaster]

What a great idea. That is the one of the best concepts in starting a fundraising for a playground  I have heard yet