Conquering CHD Fundraising Toolkit

“No one has ever become poor by giving.” – Anne Frank

Welcome

Welcome and Thank YOU for your interest in leading a fundraising event for Conquering CHD!  We are so grateful for your efforts and support to conquer the most common birth defect.  Please read the packet carefully and reach out to outreach@conqueringchd.org with any questions.

Importance of Fundraising

Fundraising plays a vital role in the growth of our organization.  Fundraising not only helps to support Conquering CHD and its mission financially, it increases awareness and education not only about our organization but about CHD in general.  What’s not to love about that?!

About This Toolkit

It is all about YOU!  This toolkit is a guide to help make planning and executing your fundraising event as easy as possible.  The toolkit is here to help you with fundraising ideas, gives you helpful materials and marketing, guides you through what to do with donations, and answers any questions you might have to make your event successful and fun!

You Are Not Alone

You might be thinking, “Do I really want to sign up for this???”  YES!!! And we are here to help! We want to make sure that not only is your event a success but that you have fun with it as well!

Let the planning begin!

The Conquering CHD Team

Remember, you are not selling anything. You are providing others with an opportunity to give to a greater cause. The biggest reason why people do not donate is because they were never asked.

10 Tips to Get You Started:

Choose the “right” activity. Consider your abilities keeping in mind size, interest, talents, goals and time.

Select a date. Choose a time that is appropriate and convenient for those who will be participating. Things to think about include: day or night, weekend vs. weekday, etc.

Let us know. Email outreach@conqueringchd.org with the name, date, location and key contact for your fundraising activity.  We can help with providing information about the national organization for you to use at your event. We can also help answer any questions you may have along the way.

Consider forming a committee. The larger the event, the more help you may want to recruit.

Identify your audience. Consider who is most likely to participate and support in the type of activity you have selected.

Develop a budget. Many activities don’t require any additional expense.  However, larger events may.  Identify expenses and possible sources of funds.  Consider what you may be able to have donated in order to keep costs down.

Develop a timeline. This is an important strategy to make sure that all necessary steps are completed in advance of the activity.

Promote your activity. Share your efforts via social media, allowing you to connect with others and build momentum for your activity.

Thank your donors. We want people to feel good about giving and know that their contribution matters!

Have Fun!!

Frequently Asked Questions

About CHD

What does CHD stand for?

CHD stands for congenital heart disease, a structural abnormality of the heart or its function that occurs at birth with chronic secondary complications that can last throughout life.

How common is CHD?

CHD is the most common birth defect.  It occurs in nearly 1 in 100 births.  Each year approximately 40,000 babies are born with CHD in the U.S., that’s 1 every 15 minutes.

How serious is CHD?

Unfortunately, CHD is also the leading cause of birth defect related death.  33% of babies born with CHD will require life-saving treatment in the first weeks and months of life.  Thanks to medical advances, survival is improving.  Once an entirely fatal disease, more than 85% of babies born with CHD will live to see their 18th birthday.  However, survival is proving to bring its own challenges.

Is there a cure?

There is no cure for CHD.  Children and adults born with CHD require ongoing specialized care and face an ongoing risk of complications.

About Conquering CHD

Who is Conquering CHD?

Conquering CHD is a patient advocacy organization whose mission is to “Conquer Congenital Heart Disease.”  We are accomplishing this through collaboration with patients, parents, providers, and partner organizations to improve quality and outcomes through CHD education, support, research, and awareness.

Founded in 2013, the Conquering CHD quickly filled a niche as the voice of the congenital heart patient.  Our Leadership includes more than 60 patients, parents, and providers from across the country making up our Board, volunteer committees and our Medical Advisory Board.

Where is Conquering CHD located?

We are a national non-profit based in Madison, WI. However, our leadership, scientific advisory committee, and volunteer network extend across all 50 states.

What percentage of my gift goes directly to programs?

CCHD works hard to ensure that every dollar given by our donors is used to make a difference in the CHD community.  Please visit our website and view our Impact Reports which describe how your dollar impacts CHD!

What are Conquering CHD’s key programs?

At Conquering CHD we:

Give Knowledge

Knowledge is power. Conquering CHD seeks to empower patients and families by providing them with the educational resources they need to achieve the highest quality care available to them. Our programs are designed to reach the patients and parents, themselves, while at the same time address necessary changes to broader patient care systems to promote a culture of engaged patient care.

Give a Voice

We seek to amplify the voice of the CHD community to inform policymakers of the significant public health burden related to CHD. By creating a solid grass-roots foundation, we leverage this voice to successfully inform legislators, administrators, government agencies and other key stakeholders to move forward key policy changes that impact the congenital heart disease community as a whole. We also teach patients and families to advocate for themselves in their own care.

Give Hope

We understand the desperate need for research to improve outcomes for patients with CHD. We work with federal agencies, medical professionals and investigators to promote patient focused research. CCHD promotes patient engagement in research from protocol development and implementation through information dissemination.  We also advocate for robust funding mechanisms that address critical gaps in understanding of CHD.

Our state chapter program gives hope to families through direct support and education, meeting families where they are.  Through local activities like peer-to-peer support, care package distribution and education materials; we are working directly with patient, families, and medical professionals, impacting one life at a time.

Is Conquering CHD a religious or faith-based organization?

Conquering CHD is not a religious or faith-based organization.  We do not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations.

What is the best way I can help?

Join our network to Conquer CHD.  Supporting our mission through fundraising is an excellent first step.  Additional ways to get involved include volunteering and sharing your story. Visit our website at conqueringchd.org to learn more.


Fundraising Ideas

Holding a Raffle

Laws regarding events or appeals that involve gambling differ from state to state. It is your responsibility to ensure that the event complies with state laws. Tickets purchased for gambling activities are not tax-deductible.

Selling a Service

Absolutely. Partnering with a business or service to raise funds for a non-profit has become a common practice.  This is called “cause marketing.”  In order to maintain positive and compliant cause marketing relationships, Conquering CHD has established the cause marketing guidelines.

For Kids

Engaging children in fundraising activities can be a powerful learning opportunity.  Include children in these activities, or work with teachers, daycare, or school administration to get everyone in on the fun. Some of the following ideas can even be combined.

Change Makers
Purse Purge
Coin Collection
Donations for Chores

Events
Read/Dance/Jump-a-thon
Fashion Show
Talent Show
Birthday Gift Donation

Stands/Sales
Lemonade Stand
Brat/Corn/Food Stand
Bake Sale
Craft Sale
Concession Stand
Car Wash
T-shirts

At Work

Try some of these fun activities at the office. You can also ask if your employer offers a matching gift program and/or payroll deduction programs.

Jeans/Dress Down Day
Ice Cream Social
“Swear” Jar

Change Makers (See Above)
Awareness Day

For All

All of the above – Plus:

Night Out
% Give Back at Restaurants

Sales
Garage Sale
Book Sale
Art Sale
Cause Marketing (Jamboree, Pampered Chef, etc)

Pledge Challenges
Virtual Run/Walk/Marathon
24 Hour Fast
Read/dance/jump/bike –a-thon

Events or Gatherings
Lunch for Little Hearts
Toast to Hearts
Leadership Dinner
Ice Cream Social
Pancake Breakfast
Run/Walk
Golf/Bowl Tournament
Cook-off



Marketing

Selecting the date and location

Planning in conjunction with a larger event can increase participation.  There are national events such as CHD Awareness Week in February, or #Conquering CHD Week in August.  Or you can find a local event, such as community garage sale weekend, larger craft fair, or during tourist season.

Promoting your activity

Conquering CHD Logo and materials

Once you have committed to a fundraiser, we can work together to get you the branded materials you need.  Be certain to properly attribute all content (logos, images, etc) throughout your campaign.  When using the Conquering CHD logo, you are indirectly representing the organization.  It is important to stay true to the mission of the organization.

Social Media

Creating an event on Facebook allows you to share and email a link to your activity.  Change your profile or personal page to reflect the activity.

Email

Identify a group of potential supporters to email about your campaign.  Reach out to friends, relatives, co-workers, community group members, teachers and others who may not normally find you on social media.  Make it heartfelt; share your story.

From the Heart

Stories and photos make an impression. Throughout the promotion of your campaign, share your story and use pictures to add to the message.  You can also use our stories and photos to describe how patients and families have been impacted by CCHD.  Remind others of the difference they can make by participating in your fundraising activity.

Promotion by Conquering CHD

Conquering CHD may occasionally share third-party fundraisers on its national social media platform.

Conquering CHD Representation at an event

We can’t guarantee a representative. However, we can consider it on a case-by-case basis depending on the date, location and projected income from the event.  If you are interested in having a representative attend your event, please contact outreach@conqueringchd.org.

Thank your contributors

This is the most important step.  We are guiding others to feel good about giving.  Let them know that they are making a difference.  Let them know you are grateful for their support.  Thank them directly with an email, or indirectly through your event page and social media.

Share your success!

Your passion is contagious.  Use social media and email to tell others about your success.  Share fundraising totals and pictures, and be sure to tag us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!


Dealing with Donations

Collecting Donations

Change Jars

Collecting change is one of the simplest ways to engage others in donating.  Any container can serve as a change jar.  A mason jar, an old wipes container, a clean food container.  Feel free to embellish the jar to make it more appealing.  People will often add a label that reads something catchy like “I am the Change!” Change jars can be carried around with you, centered on your desk, placed on-site at an event, or on the counter at the point-of-sale at any retail outlet where it can be monitored at all times. Be creative and have fun with it! Note, all cash must be converted to a check or money order before submitting to CCHD.

Fundraising Tracking

In order to ensure necessary tracking of donations and money received, we encourage you to write down the name and contact information of all donors who give you checks or cash. If someone chooses to donate to CCHD directly online, encourage them to put your name in the “in honor of” section so we can be sure to let you know who donated.  You can remind donors that only donations over $100 will be provided with a tax receipt sent to the mailing address they provide.  To identify your total funds raised, be sure to include any donations you may receive through Facebook.

Individual Donation Forms

Donation forms are useful if someone would like to take information home to donate later, donors would like to provide credit card information without using an online portal, or multiple people need to provide their information at the same time.  Patrons simply fill in their information, including check # or write a credit card number to make a pledge and either return it to you with their form of payment or mail the credit card information to the address on the form. We can provide you with an example of a donation form to use.

Credit Card

A donor can complete a donation slip with their credit card information.  Ask donors to fill in their information and let them know that credit cards are processed securely in our offices. However, we encourage any donor who would like to use a credit card to donate directly through the donate button on our website.  Remind them to indicate the name of your fundraiser in order for you to receive credit for their contribution.  By donating online, donors will automatically receive a tax receipt.

Submitting donations

Preparing Your Donation For Submission

We can only accept checks made out to Conquering CHD or CCHD, or completed pledge forms. For security purposes: please convert any cash donations to check or money order before mailing.

Please include a note with your first and last name, event date, and event title.

Mail to:
Conquering CHD
c/o Grobe & Associates
37 Kessel Court, Suite 205
Madison, WI 53711

Sooner rather than later

In order to send donors timely receipts, please submit your donations as soon after the activity as possible.  If you are waiting for expected donations, please submit what you have, and share the rest later.

Tax receipts

Monetary donations to Conquering CHD are tax-deductible and for donations over $100, we mail receipts directly to donors using their contact information from the Donation Forms you submit. Donations Conquering CHD receives without a full name and address are considered “anonymous” and the donor will not receive a receipt.  Important: If only a portion of the amount you raise will be donated (i.e.: “a $175 dinner reservation of which $100 will be donated”), attendees must be informed in advance that their tax receipt will only reflect the amount Conquering CHD receives.

Thank You!

And remember, if at any time you have questions, please contact outreach@conqueringchd.org

CCHD-2C-V

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