Fundraising ideas and proven fundraisers FREE - The Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon

The Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon

What if you could walk down the street and

pick up enough money to pay for projects,

equipment, or trips that you group will need

for the year? Well, now you can with The

Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon.

Like any A-Thon, you will be securing

pledges as your main source of income.

Unlike other A-Thons that do not provide a service (like rock-a-thons, walk-a-thons, dance-a-thons). With the Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon your group will actually be helping clean up your community and make a difference for the environment at the same time.

By promoting a trash pickup like the Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon, you will get many that will want to be a part of your efforts. You will get individuals that could help you pick up trash and you will get individuals that will sponsor you by making a pledge for each piece of garbage picked up.

Rarely do businesses donate to A-Thons, but this one they surely will. Businesses that support you will know it's good for publicity. Just make sure that you let them know that you will be putting their business name on promotional materials and in the newspaper after the event is over.

Map Out Your Grabbing Area

Get a map and select an area of your community or county that you group can comfortably cover in 6 to 8 hours one weekend picking up garbage. Pick areas along major highways, waterways, parks, and recreational areas as opposed to residential neighborhoods. There's simply more exposure and garbage in these areas.

Set Your Calendar

Pick your date and put this on all of your promotional materials. Make sure that your Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon does not fall on a time that most of your helpers will be involved in other activities.

Set Your Price

What if you found a penny or a nickel everytime you picked up a piece of trash? This is essentially what you will ask your sponsoring donors. On your sign-up form that each sponsor is presented with, have a selection of 1 cent per item picked up, 2 cents, and so on up to 25 cents per item picked up.

If a "1 cent per piece" of garbage picked up was chosen by a sponsor, and the member that secured the sponsor picked up 300 items, then $3.00 would be raised from each donor. If this group member has 20 sponsors, then this would mean that $60 would be raised.

If your group was only made up of 12 members doing the same, you would raise $720.00. Now what if some of your contributors gave you 5 cents, or 10 cents or even 25 cents for each piece of garbage picked up? You can see the potential, right?

Give a corporate rate of 20 cents per piece to 30 cents or more. Also, give a "one time donation" space for those that wish to give you $25.00 no matter what amount of garbage your members pick up. Have other "one time" options available on the sign up form.

Promote Your Event

Do not forget to publish your event in the newspapers and radio announcements. Be sure to ask several celebrities to come out and pick up trash with you. The mayor, city aldermen, sheriffs, and TV personalities are just a few. It really give all some great publicity.

Be sure to take a good amount of pictures as your members conduct their Garbage Grab-A-Thon. This will be great to put up on a website, slide show at civic meetings and in promotional brochures that your group prints. Get the pictures of local celebrities helping in many of the snapshots interacting with your "garbage grabbers".

Break your members up into small groups or patrols and award funny gifts or awards to those patrols that pick up the most garbage.

Train Your Team

Discuss with your helpers about courtesy, safety, and efficiency as they pick up garbage in high traffic areas.

Safety is the key issue when working in traffic or in residential neighborhoods. Watch for traffic, wear "hunter's orange" vests, monitor vehicular obstruction of your drivers, and obey all laws that are applicable.

Remember to make it fun for you Garbage Grab-A-Thon teams and reward them after a hard days work by treating them to snacks. If your event grows to include other helpers outside of your group next year, then you will really want to have a light luncheon after the event with awards and door prizes. This will insure that your teams are ready for the next Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon.

Go Grab 'Em Up

Now send your group members out to get as many sponsors as they can find. Have them go to the supermarket, church friends, neighbors, family, and family friends. Make sure to go to local businesses and get them to sign up too.

Tell each sponsor that you will contact them by telephone, letter or by visit to collect their donation after The Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon.

Once you realize the enormous profit potential, you will want to expand your territory for your second annual Great Garbage Grab-A-Thon.

For additional fundraising ideas using recycling programs go to Recycling For Cash.