Planned Giving - Four Reasons Why Small Nonprofits Should Seek Bequests

During a fundraising committee meeting, a new member asked the question "How much money did we receive last year from bequests or other forms of planned giving?" This question generated a lively discussion because this small nonprofit had never received money from any form of planned giving.
Board members had talked about it but the general thinking was that planned giving was too complicated and costly for a small nonprofit to manage and so they never pursued it. If this is the stance of your nonprofit, share with them the following reasons why all nonprofits should do some sort of planned giving program beginning with simple bequests.
Nonprofits receive enormous sums of money from bequests.
In the United States in 2008, more than $22 billion was given to charity through bequests. This fact looks even more impressive when you compare it with the fact that only $14.5 billion that was given to charities from the corporate sector.
The opportunity to get bequests is nearly unlimited.
About 80% of people in the United States give annually to charities while less than 3% leave a bequest. Your nonprofit has an untapped potential in the form of your current annual or major donors from which to solicit bequests.
Recessions can be a good time to seek bequests.
In difficult economic times, many donors feel that they cannot give as much as they have in the past. A bequest offers them the opportunity to feel that they are still helping your nonprofit without hurting themselves in financially challenging times.
Creating a bequest program is simple.
Once your board approves the establishment of a bequest program, you can begin advertising this in your newsletter, on your web site, and in every promotional piece you produce. That is all you need to do until some one dies and you actually receive the money. Then, it is up to your nonprofit to ensure that the bequest is used according to the wishes of the donor. It may take years before your nonprofit actually receives its first bequest. However, since it takes so little time and effort to establish and support a bequest program, is there any reason why your board wouldn't establish one?
Author Bio:
Jane B. Ford, M.Ed. is a speaker, author, teacher, coach and consultant who guides individuals and nonprofits on the road to prosperity. She has worked with small to mid-sized nonprofits for three decades in the roles of executive director, trainer, fundraiser and management consultant. You can learn more about Jane at http://TheJoyPath.com and http://GetGrantsNow.net.
Article Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Planned-Giving---Four-Reasons-Why-Small-Nonprofits-Should-Seek-Bequests&id=3525714

How to Raise Money For Your Local Schools That Are Experiencing Financial Troubles

With constant budget cutbacks occurring in our schools across the nation, school districts are constantly trying to figure out ways they can raise money to continue certain programs or to even keep the existing staff there without losing them. School fundraising has always existed but seems to be even more important now with so many districts having large budget cuts according to a school photographer and event photographer. This article will offer some suggestions on how to raise money for your child's elementary school in some unique ways other than going door to door and selling gift wrapping or elementary school pictures. Thinking outside the box and being creative can help to raise a great amount for your child's school.
One great way to raise money for your elementary school is to host a big event surrounding a fun holiday such as Halloween and Fall for kids and their families. This event can use the school as the location and have all sorts of different areas for entertainment. In the gym, you can have a variety of games for kids to play that are done by volunteers or older high school kids from the town. Another area, can be where you can buy a meal that is donated by a local restaurant. Auction items that are made by or put together by each class in the school are great things to have at the event as well so an area for silent or live auctioning is good too.
Another great way to raise money for a school is to have a pre-paid event or party. Get some of your friends to come up with a fun party and then charge people to attend the party or event and all of that money goes to the school. For example you could host a canoe party going down the river that ends with a barbeque lunch with drinks and snacks provided in the canoes as well. People pay for a fun experience and the hosts take on the entire cost of the event. This tends to do very well in smaller towns.
Another creative idea is using the good old dollar as an incentive to raise money. A lot of people like to take a chance on their luck every once in awhile and what better way than in a school fundraiser. This is a simple one to do too. You just get a large amount of people to buy a chance for $100 to win a large sum of money. The size of the school community and town are obviously going to determine how big the pot can be. Half of the $100 ticket goes to the winner and the other half goes to the school.
The final idea is to put on a 5K run to raise money for the school. The trick is making it more unique than the other local races to bring people in. Getting sponsors along with a great theme will ensure a successful event that usually will continue on a yearly basis.
Author Bio:
Connor R. Sullivan really enjoys the photos that an event photographer took of his children at a local school carnival. He really enjoys the childhood pictures he has of his kids that were taken by all school photographer in the area.
Article Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Raise-Money-For-Your-Local-Schools-That-Are-Experiencing-Financial-Troubles&id=3851617