I appreciate everyone sharing their input.. Almost all of the items we raffle are donated by local businesses. We have a very supportive community, and get a lot of G/C for restaraunts, dinner/show packages (casino town) and services. I would love a disneyland vacation package someday, but would need a huge sponsor for this. We are pretty happy and content with the local support.

We pre-sell the raffle tickets and Gordy Cards (punch cards for the carnival) for the month prior to the carnival. We just send home an order form for both and return the tickets, cards and receipt (we receipt everything) the next morning in envelopes for the student to take home. We cut it off 2 days before the carnival. We also give them a special colored raffle ticket (1) for a special raffle the night of the carnival for pre-purchasing their carnival cards.

Holly

At my last school, it seemed that the tickets went home just about two weeks before the raffle. There was a very specific plan for returning the tickets and money. Every morning during the one week before the raffle, two parent volunteers go to school early and set up a table just off the main foyer in an area where all students walk through every morning. The volunteers have class lists and as each student drops off their stubs/money the volunteers check off their name and write next to it how many tickets they sold and how much money was received. Nothing could be turned in anywhere else. Not the classroom, not the office, only at that table. Each student who stopped at the table with tickets was immediately given a cany prize of some kind. At the end of the week, numbers were counted and awards given for top individual sellers and top classes.

Well... it would be nice if the teachers tallied the numbers for us, but they don't at our school. We literally do everything for the teachers, as far as making copies, counting, collecting, etc... I don't mind because I know they are extremely busy. If you have teachers willing to do this, then that would be best.

Just out of curiousity, what are you raffling?

Thanks for your response. I too was thinking about 2 weeks prior. I was worried any longer than that that some of the event energy would be lost. In the past our school has tallied the student(s) and classes that sell the most. Do you know if the teachers are left to tallie for each class? It seems like this would be the easiest way to do it.

We are doing a couple of raffles and I'm sending the tickets about 2-3 weeks before the event. I don't know if this is the "best" time frame, but I'm having to go around other fundraisers, so I don't want the parents to get everything all at the same time.

Good luck with your auction!