The 7Th Annual Walk Away Homelessness Event

Student

Team Leader

pack

Student Team Leader Pack

Day of Event Details

The 7th Annual Walk Away Homelessness Event

Date: April 9, 2016 Location: On Natick Common

v 7:30am Registration opens

v 8:25am Welcome

v 8:30am Warm Ups

v 8:45am Start!

v 10:00am Awards and Wrap Ups

Registration:

Fees - $15 for adults and $10 for under 18’s. Under 3’s are free.

If you have already registered online, all you have to do is report to the Registration tent to pick up your t-shirt and learn about any incentive prizes you are eligible to receive.

If you’re turning in any cash or check donations, bring your registration form and collected donations with you to the Common the day of the event. Report to the registration area and turn in your materials before warming up.

If you’re registering the day of the event, report to the Registration tent with your completed registration form.

VIP Walkers Raffle:

For every $100 a walker raises they will get (1) raffle ticket entered into the raffle for

o 2 Round Trip domestic Jet Blue Travel Vouchers

o 2 Tickets to a Red Sox Game

To qualify, all donations must be registered online by Friday, April 8, 5:00pm

Awards:

v Highest Individual Fundraiser

v Highest Fundraising Team

v Highest Fundraising Youth Group

KEYS TO SUCCESSFUL TEAMS

Be creative, have fun, and ask everyone you meet to support your effort. Whatever you choose, the key is to get started early!

Build your team

· Recruit as many people for your team as you can. Do you know someone who likes to walk or is a fitness fanatic? Encourage friends, classmates, neighbors and family to join your team. Emphasize the 7th Annual Walk Away Homelessness is an opportunity for them to make a difference in their community.

· Engage people with various connections – they can open doors to new donors and more team members.

· Register online. As a team captain you can create a personalized web page to set team goals, recruit and communicate with your walkers and track your donations and pledges. Friends, family, and business associates are able to sponsor you online in a secure process where they will receive an instant tax receipt and see their contribution applied to your team’s goal. Visit http://walk.familypromisemetrowest.org to get started today.

Set your goals (team & individual)

· Set fundraising goals for the team - make it challenging but realistic. A large but attainable goal will help your walkers feel proud and motivated.

· Increase last year’s amount. What did you raise last year? Set this year’s goal 10% higher.

· Work with your team to set individual goals - many people start at $100.

· Lead by example. Share with your team members what your goal will be; this will help encourage others to reach for the stars.

· Announce your team goal so that everyone knows what you are working towards.

Show your enthusiasm

· Show your commitment and encourage others to give.

· Share stories about why you and your group are supporting Family Promise Metrowest. Do you have a story to share from your experience of volunteering with Family Promise Metrowest? Do you know someone who was homeless and could have been helped by being one of our guests?

· Make team T-shirts, posters, flyers, and more.

· Motivate and encourage your team by communicating regularly.

· Promote your team’s work. Share your story with your community paper, write an article in your school/corporate newsletter, or hang flyers at local community organizations.

· Share information about Family Promise Metrowest and the 7th Annual Walk Away Homelessness Event. What motivates you? It could motivate others!

· Track the progress of individuals and your team, and let everyone know how they are doing.

Spread the word

· Host a kick-off event at a local restaurant.

· Create your team’s web page on http://walk.familypromisemetrowest.org and help your team members create their personal web pages.

· Combine the talents and time of everyone you know. Who’s good at making posters? Who’s good at writing a letter? Who’s the best person to make phone calls?

· Draft a letter for your principal to sign, inviting everyone to join together, or obtain permission to send an email on his or her behalf.

· Use your personal web page or Facebook Page to send e-mails asking for support.

· Add your Walk information to the signature of your emails and faxes

Make the ask

· Ask your friends, family, neighbors, teachers, etc. You’ll be surprised how many people will ask what they can do to help. People want to help others just as you do.

· Request your sponsors to donate rather than pledge. This eliminates the task of collecting pledges after the event.

· Import your personal address book to http://walk.familypromisemetrowest.org and create a personal email appeal to send to all your contacts in one fell swoop! A link to your personal web page will be included.

· Write a letter to your vendors, friends, associates, etc. asking them to sponsor you. You can find a sample letter in this kit.

· Carry a sponsor form with you wherever you go. You can download a sponsor form link located on the Team Tools page.

· Research if companies honor matching gifts to make twice the impact! Make sure to get the company’s matching gift form to fill out, and deliver it with your donation.

· Follow-up with your “asks”. Don’t be afraid to ask again – just ask with a smile.

Host a Fundraiser (more fundraising ideas follow)

· Organize a fundraiser to generate excitement while raising money for a good cause.

· Promote your fundraiser. The more people who know about it, the more successful it will be.

· Approach a local business to host a fundraiser to support your efforts. Will your hairdresser host a cut-a-thon for you? Will your favorite waiter or waitress donate their tips to you one night? Will your favorite hangout host Family Promise Metrowest Night and donate the cover charge to you?

Reaching your fundraising goal can be simple.

Follow this technique to help get you to your goal:

Sponsor yourself for $25……………………………………………………………………….……….…….…..$25

Ask 3 family members to sponsor you for $20 each…………………………………………..…………………………………………….$60

Ask 3 friends for $5 each………………………………………….…………………………..……….…….…..$15

Ask 2 businesses you frequent for $50 each………………………………………………...……………………………………..$100

Total Raised $200

CREATING YOUR TEAM ONLINE

Go to:

http://walk.familypromisemetrowest.org

Click on Register

Click on Register Now

Complete Online Registration Form

Click on Complete Registration

Start a team

To Join a Team

To be an individual participant

Check your team’s progress by clicking on: My Account

From My Account page: click on spread the word to send emails to your team and friends

In “My Account” page you can also customize your team page, add pictures, check donations. Check all the tabs in My Account for this cool stuff and more!

For help contact Family Promise at 508-318-4820.

TEAM FUNDRAISING

Have a food sale - breakfast foods, lunch, baked goods, soft pretzels, and snacks are always a good way to raise money.

Hold a car wash in your neighborhood.

Fill a jar full of candy or another kind of display and have people guess the amount of contents or weight for $1 or $5 per guess – the winner gets the jar.

Host an auction - ask for donations of unique items, then display the items at the auction and have your friends, family, and neighbors bid on them.

Host a yard sale - do you have items cluttering up your home? Ask everyone to gather their items, put up signs, and get rid of those extra items, all while raising money for Family Promise.

Dine Out for Family Promise Metrowest -ask a restaurant you frequent to donate a portion of their proceeds one day, or create a special Family Promise Metrowest item on their menu.

Cut-a-thon - ask your hairdresser to donate $5-$10 per haircut.

Host a 50-50 - have everyone donate $10 and give them a raffle ticket. At the end of the night pull a winner – they get half the money and you get the other. (Raffle license maybe required)

Host a dinner party and have everyone bring a donation in lieu of a hostess gift.

Host a book sale – gather gently used books, movies and games and re-sell them for $2-3 each

Save your change – put your spare change in a jar and watch it grow.

YOUTH FUNDRAISING

Have food sales – breakfast foods, lunch, baked goods, soft pretzels and snacks are always a good way to raise money.

Hold a Penny War – This is a wonderful way to engage students in fundraising while also learning basic math skills and having some fun. The team with the resulting highest amount of pennies wins the total amount collected. Instructions on running a penny war can be found at http://www.pennies.org/index.php/how-to-conduct-a-penny-fundraising-drive

School sporting events - Set up a booth outside the gates; solicit funds from those tailgating. (Check for school or campus regulations on fundraising).

Dress up or down - Have kids donate $1 - $5 per day to dress up or down for the ability to wear jeans to school for a day or to dress for a certain theme, such as “Crazy Hat Day”.

Challenge – Students donate their loose change. Each teacher or administrator has a bucket. The object is to get the most money into your favorite teacher’s bucket. At the end, the lucky teacher with the most money in their bucket will get a pie in the face or have to dress up in costume. Use your creativity and make sure to get approval.

Host a yard sale in your gym. Collect used books, DVDs, movies and video games to sell.

Do extra chores - Offer to walk your neighbors’ dogs, rake their leaves, shovel snow, and more, for a donation.

Make arts and crafts and sell them to family and friends.

Reading for Family Promise - Ask for donations for each page of a book a child reads, or each book a child reads depending on their age.

Dance for Family Homelessness - Hold a school-wide dance to raise money for assisting family homelessness. Set a fee for attending that dance that will be donated after the event.

Host a Talent Show - Hold a school-wide talent show to raise money. Set a fee for attending that will be donated after the show.

Script for Announcement to Student Body

Good morning/afternoon, I’m ______and this is ______and we are the (your school’s name) student leaders forming a team to Walk Away Homelessness. Our team will participate in a walk-a-thon on Saturday, April 8th from 8:00 AM – 10.30 on the Natick Common. We will be one of several schools forming teams. With your help we can get the largest team.

Family Promise Metrowest is an organization that helps homeless families with children transition from being homeless to getting a home of their own. Family Promise’s goal is to keep the family together, offering stability and support to families with children. The average age of a child helped by Family Promise Metrowest is 6 years old.

It should be a really fun day on the Natick Common, walking to the high school and back (about 3 miles).

They’re going to have a DJ, games, and prize drawings and it’s all to support a really great cause, so please contact us (your names) to join our team. Thanks!

Text, Email or letter to invite team members to join

I am writing to ask you to join the (name of team) Walk Away Homelessness Team on April 9, 2016 from 8 AM to 10:30 AM at the Natick Common. There will be a DJ, drinks and food, games and prizes and other fun activities.

Family Promise Metrowest (FPM) is a cooperative, interfaith partnership offering hope to homeless families with children through safe transitional shelter, meals, and supportive case management as they seek permanent housing. The average age if a homeless child served by Family Promise is 6 years old.

To join our team please go to: http://walk.familypromisemetrowest.org and search for (our team’s name), then register. If you need help registering or any other part of the process please contact me. Your participation will help families and children who are homeless to reach the goal of having a home of their own.

Thank you

Your name and any contact information you want your team to have

Script for follow up emails and letters

Team Name ______

I am writing again to encourage you to join our Team to walk away homelessness on April 9th 8-10.30am on Natick Common. The walk is only 3 miles and your participation would mean a lot to me and to the families you will be helping.

Did you know that:

· Family Promise gets no government funding so it relies on donations from people like us.

· The average age of a homeless child served by Family Promise Metrowest is 6 years old.

· Most homeless shelters separate fathers and boys over 12 from the rest of their family. Family Promise Metrowest keeps families together.

· 25% of homeless people are children under the age of 18.

· Children experiencing homelessness are sick 4 times more often than other children.

· A family of 4 grossing more than $2,114 per month is NOT eligible for state shelter assistance?

Please come and walk and join in the fun. There will be a DJ, drinks and food, games and prizes and other fun activities.

Thank you

Your name and any contact information you want your team to have