Fundraising Ideas Needed!!

I have never done a fundraiser for a school, but I work in the fundraising field and have done several for my theatre company. You might check on restaurants in the area which might be willing to give you 10% of the business for a special evening benefiting the school. Somewhere attractive to families, but not a chain. You can incorporate a 50/50 raffle to any event, meaning that people buy tickets and 50% of the proceeds go to the school and 50% go back to the winner. Be warned that events are very time consuming and often cost more than they are worth, but people really like them. A raffle might be fun too - you never know what your local businesses will donate just for the free ad space, even in this economy. But if you do a raffle you will need a license, which you can get from the city. As a kid I remember doing dance a thons - that was fun!

Good Luck~

A quick and easy one I like is selling gift cards, sometimes known as scrip. (Purchasers pay face value and use like cash, but school buys them at a discount, which varies by merchant.) You can do monthly orders, around holidays, or maintain an inventory. Use to buy groceries, gas, etc. One vendor is http://www.mannagroup.net/

This is what our preschool did this year:

We contacted a children's theater group, and they performed in our auditorium. I think they charged about $1-$2 more per ticket, and the school got the upcharge. Before and after the performance, donated items and services were on display for a silent auction. There were gift certificates from local independent restaurants, jewelry, sports memorabilia, theater tickets, interior decorators and home organizational experts. Some more unique items up for bid included a teacher taking a child to an afternoon of pottery painting, and each classroom asked parents to donate a large art canvas. Each class did an art project (up to the teacher and parent volunteer) and raffle tickets were sold for $5 each. It was a lot of fun, and we ended up winning the canvas from my daughter's class. It was a lot of fun. Hope that gives you some ideas. Good luck!