Create An Event

Independent Events

You can create an event on your own or you can gather a group of friends. Here are some ideas to start you off:

Community Events

Groups of KHK volunteers have had a number of very successful fundraisers that were affiliated with the community including soccer events, theater events at local universities, as well as events at town-wide festivals.  Think about taking advantage of the things going on in your own community and see if there is a connection you can make.  Is there a Community Fair coming up?  Or a Voter Registration Drive near Election Day?  Is there a Sidewalk Sale or a Founder’s Day Celebration?  Or a local sporting event?  Contact the people running the event, introduce them to Kids Helping Kids and ask them if you can participate in one of the following ways:

-   See if you can run the concession stand and take a percentage of the profits.  Have a Kids Helping Kids sign; explain who you are, and what you’re doing.  While you make change for that Milky Way Bar, ask for donations.

-   Sell baked goods you and your friends make.  Brownies, cookies, anything you can pick up and eat go a long way at a community function.

Social Entrepreneurship

You’re a bunch of talented, creative people.  Sell it!  Kids Helping Kids has been involved in very successful social entrepreneurial projects, the Kids Helping Kids Heart Bracelet and the Kids Helping Kids Art Card project.  If you’re interested in these projects, contact us.  You can also take advantage of your own creativity and create artwork, jewelry (beads, silver, shells, etc.,) arts and crafts (sculpture, collage, metalwork, etc.,) and find ways to sell it to raise money.  At any function be sure to have plenty of posters and material, be sure to talk and talk and talk about Kids Helping Kids and why you’re raising money.  And ask for donations!  Have a donations jar whenever you’re out in public.

Involve local stores
Go to local stores and explain what you’re doing and ask for things they might donate for free that you can sell...extra t-shirts, extra nail polish, gift certificates, anything they can think of!  Print their name on an event brochure, on a sign that includes your sponsors, maybe even a t-shirt.

      How about...
           Comedy Club Nights
           Movie Nights
           Dances
           Open Mic Night (for music or comedy acts)
           Sporting events
           Garage Sales

        For these ideas you must:

                  • Have a responsible adult or adults every step of the way depending on your age
                  • Know about how many people to expect
                  • Find a place to hold them (that will hopefully let you do it for free)
                  • Be sure you can sell soda and snacks
                  • Be sure there are no insurance problems
                  • Find out exactly what hours you can use the facility
                  • Pre-advertise the event A LOT!
                  • Advertise MORE
                  • Go around to your local merchants and ask for their support. 
                  • Post flyers with them, ask them for merchandise to sell at the event, or ask for money from
                        them and in return, put up banners with their names. 
                  • Be sure to go to the stores teens will shop at...Music stores, clothing stores, toy stores, bookstores, etc.

Even More ideas!

• Bike-a-thon
• Dance-a-thon
• Walk-a-thon
• Chess-a-thon
• Eat-a-thon
• Or even a skateboard-a-thon

The Holidays

Holidays are great times to tell people about Kids Helping Kids.  You can create your own holiday mailing and send it out to everyone you know telling them about Kids Helping Kids and ask them for donations.

Gift Wrapping at Local Stores

Ask local stores if you can gift-wrap and take a small donation for each wrapping you do.  Don’t forget to tell everyone why you’re doing it while you’re wrapping.  Try bookstores, toy stores, kids clothing stores and music stores.  But practice wrapping or get someone to teach you how.  You want to be invited back next year!

 

       Kids Helping Kids Parties

Lately, we’ve seen a lot of kids doing amazing things at important occasions, e.g., sweet sixteens, birthday parties, confirmations, graduation parties, bar and bat mitzvahs:  they’ve been asking family and friends to donate to Kids Helping Kids in lieu of gifts.

 

       Publicize, Publicize, Publicize!

You want to make sure as many people come to your event as possible.  A good way to ensure optimal attendance is to publicize.  Remember, if you are going to put up flyers in any public place you must check with the proper authorities, i.e. if it’s a school – the Administration office, a business – the owner.

Let your community and school newspapers know about Kids Helping Kids so they are on the alert when you have an event or if you have just finished a project.  You can even write letters to the editor of you school, university and local community newspapers detailing what Kids Helping Kids is and how people can help.

When you hold a big event that the whole community can enjoy, you should also try to get it publicized in the town’s newspaper.  Call the newspaper and see what reporter covers community events.  You can send out a press release before you hold an event, asking that person to attend to write a story or ask questions.  Always make the job as easy as possible for the reporter.  Provide him or her with the required information in a timely fashion.  After an event, you can also send in an article that you’ve written detailing what happened at the event, etc.  The more publicity you can get for Kids Helping Kids, the more Kids Helping Kids can grow and achieve its goals of helping others.

A press release should include the name of our organization (Kids Helping Kids, Inc.), what the event is (for example, a walk-a-thon to benefit _______ Hospital), where it will be held (starting on the Green at the corner of Main and Grove Streets), when it will be held (e.g. Saturday, October 6 from 1-4 pm), how to sign up (for example, you can sign up right on the Green before the race, donations also accepted there etc.

 

        Holding an Event on Campus

If you want to hold a KHK event on your campus (for example, let’s say you want to hold a walk-a-thon), you will probably need to register the event with your college.  To check to see if you need to register an event, you should contact your Office of Student Activities.  In most cases, registration of an event will involve filling out a form or forms which ask you to provide the following information: 

• Your contact information
• What the event is
• Where and when it will be held (remember, if you are holding an event indoors, you will need to reserve a room with the registrar or campus coordinator); how long it will last
• What supplies you will need for the event (for example, for a walk-a-thon, you might need tables, water, etc.  Your college will probably be able to provide you with some things, e.g., tables or a sound system. Other things, like the water, may or may not be provided)
• Whether any outside speakers/vendors are coming to your campus for the event (for example, if you are having someone from a hospital or an affiliated organization come, you will need to provide their name and if they are being paid to speak at the event, etc.)
• Your budget for the event and if you are requesting any additional money for it.  Keep in mind that some schools require people who host events to go through a host training or a leadership training session.  You can find out at the Office of Student Activities if you are required to do this.  Keep in mind that host/leadership training sessions, if required, probably only occur a few times a semester.  Thus, you should plan accordingly and make sure you are eligible to host an event before you start planning one. 



A VERY IMPORTANT NOTE

Your enthusiasm is terrific.  However, you need to be careful about certain things you do when you’re trying to raise money for a good cause.  Depending on your age, you may need permission and supervision to do anything we’ve suggested.  If you’re holding an event somewhere you’ll almost definitely need an adult to help you with permission, rent, if any, parking issues, insurance etc.