Sweet souvenirs. Work with a team to brainstorm fundraising ideas that will put everyone’s creativity to a test. Pre-teens will enjoy giving a hand in bake sales, designing cookies, candies and cupcakes or other novelty items to sell for the fundraiser. Make use of easy to understand and identifiable themes that will make the fundraising effort stand out and be recognized within the community. The more creative the presentation and the products are, the more people will want to purchase them. The fundraising organizers may opt to bake cupcakes and cookies with sports-related themes or make hand-made knick knacks and souvenirs that will reflect the sports theme of the fundraiser.

Car wash. Organizers can hold a fundraising car wash at the school parking lot and play some good music while the cars are getting cleaned and shined.  Organizers can also opt to serve simple refreshments while giving a short speech about the fundraiser to raise awareness to those who are participating. Crank up the music and get the cheerleaders do a short number for those waiting in line for the car wash. Make sure to hold your fundraising car wash party in an appropriate place where no one will complain of the noise—or the soap suds!

Scratch cards. There are a number of great scratch card sources over the internet. Some provide cheap bonuses like personalization and design, with a reasonable amount of profit. Scratch cards easily yield up to 80% to 90% profit without the hassle. These scratch cards are pocket-sized booklets with scratch off circles and a coupon pad in the center. Some scratch cards can be personalized or designed with the theme of the organizer’s choice. Scratch cards can also be printed with the team’s photo in front. Each fundraising participant who gets scratch card will scratch two or more circles and will pay the total amounts revealed by the scratch off. Make sure to place amounts that are easily affordable but will raise sufficient funds to meet the fundraising organizers’ goals.

Little league cookie dough. Let’s face it—everyone loves cookies! A little goes a long way for these sugary treats as everybody will surely buy a piece or two. They are easy to sell by piece or by dozens—depending on how good they are!—so organizers must make sure to come up with quality scrumptious cookies that will definitely sell and bring in the money for the fundraiser. A bake sale is a common fundraiser that will also work with sports fundraising. Parents and teachers can come together to bake cupcakes and other handy pastries that are easy on the budget but will definitely sell.

Local pizza store discount cards. Take a trip to the neighborhood’s favorite pizza parlor and ask them to participate in the sports fundraising activity by either being at the sports event or providing some great offers to be printed out on discount cards. Other establishments that may provide great discounts include sandwich shops, local restaurants, florists, dry cleaners and car washes. Make sure that it is a popular service that most people frequent and everybody will enjoy.

Recycling. With the mass of pollution and environmental damage people encounter everyday, it does not hurt to try and help save the earth and what’s left of it. Parents and teachers alike will definitely want to help preserve the environment for their children and the generations to come. Everyone can give a hand in this type of fundraising activity—all they need to do is collect empty ink jet cartridges or soup labels to give back to the local grocery store, who will in turn provide an amount of cash for the little league. Make sure that the business is willing to participate in the cause and support the fundraising activity.

Many teams begin to recognize that candy or cookie dough sales were not the most effective way to can raise money. A growing proportion of the population with its food and candy and cookie dough just not interested in dieting, I’ve heard.

Another reason that this can not be traditional fundraisingThe best idea is that most teams do on your own. While the first might be curious to hear it makes much sense when you think about it. If you sold 25 teams in the league and all of them, a kind of cookie dough at a given time, almost all of your customers who bought cookie dough from someone and that means that if you do not get there first you could be from Tough luck. I can not count how many times I’ve heard parents complain that have tried 18 different children, they sell aTub of frozen cookies.

Many teams turn to new youth sports fundraising programs, which a little can be done differently in the past than the programs they have. This is can mean a totally new kind of fund-raising, or just approaching youth sports fundraising in a new way.

A community sports fundraiser organized by Greendale elementary school student Ashley Chester raised more than $4,500.

From dawn to dusk last Saturday, the 11-year-old offered by-donation rides on her uncle Paul’s monster truck, Firestorm.

Ninety-five people took her up on that offer, and while they were there, many entered bids in a silent auction, trying to win some nifty prizes.

A one-week all-inclusive week at a cabin in the Shuswap was the hottest commodity, fetching $1,120.

“Two items in the silent auction pulled in $2,000 on their own, so that was very good,” said Ashley’s mom, Victoria. “She pulled in another $300 on the barbecue, and I’m just sorting through a few hundred cans and bottles right now.”

Victoria spent a quiet Thursday morning counting 1,700 pop cans, over 1,100 plastic bottles and a couple large bags full of beer cans. She hadn’t even gotten to the glass bottles yet.

“Some guy brought in a full utility trailer,” Victoria laughed.

Despite a smaller-than-expected turnout, the day was a success. Money raised will got to selected local youths who are having trouble playing sports due to finances.

Call David Chester at 604-792-5029 for more information.

Twilight actor Cameron Bright was in his hometown of Nanaimo on Thursday to sign autographs and help launch a youth sports fundraiser.

Bright joined city and sports officials at Island Kia to help announce the fundraising initiative that supports the non-profit sports groups Nanaimo Youth Soccer Club and the Mid Vancouver Island Tenpin Association.

The 16-year-old is a familiar face to both organizations, having played youth soccer and enjoyed outings at Splitsville Entertainment.

Organizers said the fundraiser is needed more than ever since government funding was slashed. NYSC also runs a team for autistic children as well as after-school programs.

“We have two youth sports groups in need of funding,” said organizer Mike Best on Thursday. “(The fundraiser) would go a long way to replacing some of the money.”

Several Twilight followers were also at Island Kia to catch a glimpse of Bright before he trekked to nearby Future Shop to sign autographs for hundreds of fans.

NYSC and MVITA have paired up to host a tenpin bowling extravaganza in January that will feature a celebrities doubles tournament and more than $25,000 in prizes, including a 2009 Kia Rio.

Bright bowled in the tournament last year and hopes to make an appearance in January, schedule permitting.

The third installment of the Twilight series, Eclipse, recently wrapped filming in Vancouver and Bright is in the midst of a globetrotting tour promoting New Moon.

All proceeds of the Jan. 31 event will go to the two non-profit sports groups. Event tickets for $5 can be purchased at Island Kia on Bowen Road, the NYSC soccer office in Beban Park, Splitsville on Calder Road or at the Duncan Lanes on James Street in Duncan. Tickets can also be purchased from NYSC soccer players.

For information, visit www.NanaimoSoccer.ca.

DBell@nanaimodailynews.com

© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

Ticket sales for the Paradise High School House of Sports fundraising raffle have risen to an all-time high in the past week with the announcement of planned open house tours starting Thanksgiving Weekend.
According to Project Coordinator Jack Danielson, 150 tickets were sold in the past week, which is more than any previous week throughout the process. It brought the total sales to approximately 850 tickets, which sold for $100 each. That means the project has raised $85,000 of the targeted goal – $500,000 with the intent of keeping high school sports programs intact. Now 4,150 tickets remain.

And the three-bedroom house, located at 1856 Conifer Drive, is nearly completed due to the site management of Trilogy Construction, donations from local businesses and numerous volunteers. Once the open house tours begin Nov. 28 and 29, project coordinators hope to see sales soar. The open house events will also feature raffle drawings for $2.50 tickets. Visitors can win many prizes contributed by local businesses, and the grand prize is a raffle ticket for the house drawing.

“We are going to hold the event of the year hoping the ticket sales will skyrocket once the house is seen by the public,” said Joan Swingle, House of Sports Designer and Decorator. Even as the project is coming to completion, the house is still drawing donations. Swingle said it seems “Christmas is coming early to Paradise” and to the high school sports program, with donations from companies and

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She said an exciting thing happened just the other day when Lincoln Hardware, a company located in North Carolina, offered to donate the custom cabinet hardware free of charge. The company had initially offered a discount for the House of Sports, but the west coast sales manager called earlier this week to relay the news that Lincoln decided to donate the hardware. Swingle said it appears Paradise and this project, in particular, is being “touched by the nation,” with generosity of spirit and heart coming from outside the community.

In addition, local business owners Mike and Robin Bitker -Booster Vice President and Secretary, have stepped up to support the program by donating $500 towards the raffle prizes.

“They have set the bar high in graciousness and responding to the needs of the young men and women knowing all too well the criticality of the success of the House Of Sports Fundraiser,” Swingle said. “There will not be any school budgeted sports programs next year if this fundraiser is not a success.”

For information regarding the house, ticket sales, or to donate prizes for upcoming raffle events, please call Joan Swingle at Joan Swingle’s Decorator’s Delight (530) 228-9522 or go online and view the webpage www.keepoursports.com. Tickets can also be purchased through the mail by sending a check payable to PHS Boosters to Decorator’s Delight at 5790 Clark Road Paradise, Calif., 95969. Please be sure to include a driver’s license number, address and phone number.

Principal Casey Taylor kisses Silhouette the pig as the result of a sports fundraiser. (Elizabeth De Alwis/The Post)
Achieve Charter School Principal Casey Taylor planted her lips on a real live pig yesterday morning, cheered on by the student body despite threats of extra homework.
It was the result of a fundraising effort in which students filled more than 20 piggy banks with donations for the school’s new sports programs. Each piggy bank represented a teacher or staff member, and the pig with most money in it was the one chosen to kiss a real pig from a student’s farm during yesterday’s awards assembly. In all, the pigs held $250, and nearly half of it was in Taylor’s piggy bank. The multi-purpose room was packed with parents and students as “Silhouette” walked in for her kiss.

“I brought my special kissing lips,” Taylor said, evoking laughter from her students. “It’s no secret that I love animals,” she said sarcastically. Cameras flashed and cheers erupted as Taylor, wearing plastic red lips, leaned in to kiss the pig.

“It was wonderful,” she joked afterwards, ” a privilege.”

Though it is a well-known fact at Achieve Carter School that its principal was not an animal lover, kissing the pig was “a clear sign I love my school,” Taylor said.

The school has raised $1,100 already for the new sports and physical education programs, and now has raised another $250 from the piggy banks, Taylor said. The money will fund grades K-7 cross country, 4-7 volleyball, and 5-7 basketball.

The school recently purchased new PE equipment to meet the needs of the middle school students, but the elementary school children have been benefiting from it as well. The school also bought new uniforms for the basketball teams. Achieve has recently started competing in sporting events with other schools. On Thursday, the boys basketball team played its first game against Yuba Feather, but lost by one point, 26-25. After the pig-kissing, the students in grades K-3 received awards for academic conduct, improvement and effort, and the 4-7 grade students were announced for honor roll.

But local fundraising to make the project a reality had gone on for years prior to the county’s grant, and the more than $900,000 in cash and pledges generated by community efforts under the umbrella of Team Green continues to play a role in the project at Somerville High School.

“People don’t realize what a herculean effort this was,” said Billy Garbarini, president of the Somerville High School Athletic Hall of Fame and a co-chair of Team Green.

GOING GREEN: The project includes new synthetic turf at both Brooks Field and a nearby field hockey field. Named after former high school Principal T. Latimore Brooks, Brooks Field has been the site of Somerville High School football games since the 1940s, and Immaculata High School began playing their home football games there in the early 1960s, according to Garbarini.

Spearheaded by the Somerville Education Foundation with the support of district Superintendent Carolyn Leary, Team Green was started in 2005 to raise money for the turf improvements, which were to be tackled in different phases.

Groups that contributed to the project represent a who’s who of local youth sports. The Pop Warner Football Organization made a $45,000 pledge; Immaculata High School, through its Field of Dreams organization, pledged $125,000; the Hall of Fame pledged $70,000; and the Somerville High School Quarterback Club pledged $10,000 ? just to name a few of the donors.

One of the group’s biggest successes was securing a six-figure contribution ? Garbarini declined to say the exact amount ? for the facility’s naming rights. A native of the borough, Jeff Vanderbeek, chairman and managing partner of the New Jersey Devils, pledged that contribution in September 2008, with the facility to be rechristened the Gus Vanderbeek Athletic Complex at Brooks Field after his father, a 1948 Somerville High School graduate, football and track star and longtime football official.

“I grew up there, I literally walked that field probably every other day of my life,” Vanderbeek said. “Just to see it thrive, to see it come back, to see kids playing on it, to see the night football games and just to be proud of it, that to me is going to mean the most.”

Jeff and Gus Vanderbeek will be honored with others during a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the field on Sept. 17, according to Garbarini.

REACHING THE GOAL: Garbarini said Team Green and Mayor Brian Gallagher were also pursuing the open space grant from the county. Somerville was among three districts that received grants of up to $1 million for recreation improvements, and freeholders on June 2 unanimously awarded Dakota Excavating Inc. a $1,010,647 contract for the project.

“That took us to the next level,” Garbarini said. “The thing we’re doing now, that was phase two. Phase one was just get Brooks Field done.”

The local share for turf work beyond the county’s grant is less than $20,000, according to county Public Works Director Michael Amorosa, who said work continues at the field hockey field, but Brooks Field is finished. Team Green money is paying for all the other features that will make the complex a place for student athletes to compete and for their supporters to cheer them.

Garbarini said Team Green is behind turf field maintenance equipment; two new, high-tech scoreboards for the fields; a new sound system; bleacher refurbishments; new bleachers for the field hockey field; a home press box; lighting upgrades; and snack shack upgrades. The group has committed close to $225,000, he said.

Some of the work, such as the home press box, snack shack renovations and new bleachers planned for the home side of Brooks Field, will not be completed this year, according to Garbarini, who envisioned Team Green as more of a dormant entity ready to help when necessary once the projects are completed.

“They started out with nothing,” said state Sen. Christopher “Kip’ Bateman, whom Team Green lists as its official spokesperson. “I remember the running races they had, the bake sales – a lot of effort went into raising money and it really paid off. Everybody is anxious to get on the field.”

ednote Martin C. Bricketto: 908-243-6609; mbricketto@MyCentralJersey.com