We hold both our major fundraisers on a Saturday. The Thanksgiving Music Fest and the Spring Carnival & Silent Auction. Attendance is good because we don’t expect 600 students and their families to show up.
The Music Fest is held at night and tickets are sold in advance and at the door. We rent a local high school auditorium for that event. I couldn’t imagine having this concert on any other night of the week. People have more time on Saturday then they do on a week night after dealing with jobs, dinner and homework.
The Spring Carnival is a noon-4 p.m. event. The crowd is large enough to have a pleasant, enjoyable event and raise some money. Remember, not every child is in an organized sport or activity on Saturday.
We publicize the events in the school and in the local newspapers. Both events have received coverage in the newspaper with pictures and interviews. The kids were excited to see themselves on the front page. That’s what it’s all about. Getting the students and the community together.
Hi! I think location is the key! We do a festival in October on a Saturday. Our School is located directly across the street from the fields the kids are playing soccer on. So the kids play their games and come across the street for the festival. It is such a visual draw that even teams from other towns that are playing on our fields that day come across the street & check out the action. If we held it any other place I bet we would only get about 1/2 the people we currently get.
For those of you who hold fundraisers on Saturdays, how much of your participation is (if at all), greatly reduced by so many of the kids being involved in other events on Saturdays, such as having sporting games.
Maybe you all draw enough students from other schools in on Saturdays that it doesn't really impact the turnout? I would think that with the right advertising and kids driving by a school with carnival games outside such as the bouncy domes, that maybe it wouldn't matter.
Our school has never tried an outdoor carnival, and I would think it might be something we might want to think about.
