Over the years, parents, students, and the Catholic Memorial High School Community have developed a great tradition in Waukesha, Wisconsin: a Memorial Walk-a-thon. The event has grown over the past 28 years and raises money to keep tuition at 80% of the actual cost. A year ago, the school moved from paper to digital fundraising. The move helped fill registration. It also simplified the entire process, from registration to sending reminder emails to constituents. Monica Fleming, Assistant Director of Development, shares that the technology helped the school stay in constant communication with potential participants for the event.
The school plans on using online fundraising software again this year. Catholic Memorial High School kicked off the walk-a-thon, scheduled for October, with an assembly yesterday. Students are excited to create their pledge pages and start sending links to friends and families in the hopes of collecting pledges and watching their goal thermometers rise. The ease of email promotes a different avenue of fundraising. In the past, parents might have written a large check to support their student; but now, personal webpages facilitate micro-pledges which certainly add up.
Fleming uses online fundraising software for two other events: a golf tournament and a homecoming tailgate party. The tournament benefits the school’s athletic club. The tailgate reunites alumni and keeps them engaged with the school.
Websites
- Catholic Memorial High School
- Catholic Memorial Walkathon 2010
- Homecoming Tailgate Party 2010
- 22nd Annual Alumni Golf Outing
Word spread, and soon others joined the effort to do something about the dismal outlook for Oakland Schools. On the second bike ride, 15 supporters were ready to ride to the State Capitol in solidarity to improve school funding. The community was gearing itself up to demonstrate their frustration while at the same time, drawing attention to the crisis. By the time the ride occurred, 50 people rode 100 miles to demonstrate their commitment.
For the second ride, the core group believed that protesting is a start, but it would be beneficial to raise money as well. So they invested in a 
When asked about the ride’s success, Mike commented that the event appealed to people’s passions. There were those that enjoyed bike riding and the physical challenge of riding 100 miles. Others were committed to improving California’s education system. Additionally, actively investing oneself in a cause like this demonstrated to teachers that parents support them and modeled to children engagement in education. The event helped boost everyone’s morale.
California currently ranks 48th in per pupil spending and has the highest teacher-to-student ratio in the nation. There is a crisis in funding for education in California. But this year, Ride for a Reason saved a digital media position at one of their schools and was able to open the library each day and keep up the collection. It’s not seismic, but it’s a start. It’s also a great testimony to what a passionate community can do for their children’s education which in turn will have long lasting effects.
What about for younger kids?
Community colleges educate people of all ages across the country, and have always offered a more affordable way for students to obtain a higher education. In recent years, community college enrollments have increased as people seek to learn new skills in our challenging economy, at a more affordable cost. Even those seeking a four-year degree may choose to begin their education at a local community college as they know they can receive a quality education at a lower cost.
How to create a successful school fundraiser.
Today, Muir’s spirit lives on in the work of 
Marshall went on to explain that in the past, Restore Hetch Hetchy’s donor base was much older and responded to direct mailings. The non-profit wanted to expand their donor base. They believed that designing an event that generated revenue by getting their participants to raise money and spread awareness would also be an excellent outreach tool. A year and a half ago, they came up with the idea of Muir’s March: a pledge event where backpackers would ask for support from friends and family to walk in the footsteps of John Muir, thereby raising awareness and resources to restore the Hetch Hetchy Valley. Walking for a week through Yosemite requires good physical conditioning and appealed to many younger, outdoor enthusiasts. This helped to bring in their friends and families, a younger demographic, into the donor base. Furthermore, having pledgers raise money for the organizations, brings in people that the organization would never be able to reach on its own. In this year’s march, over 83% were first time contributors to Restore Hetch Hetchy.
Question: What do you get when you put 40 writers in a room for nine hours, give them as much coffee and M&M’s as they like, bring in a yoga instructor to lead stretches halfway through, guide them through fun writing exercises, and award prizes all day long?
that allowed friends and family to pledge to the writers directly. Unlike the previous two years, writers could create a personal page on the site and send out emails to potential sponsors. Judy believes that most people are willing to support someone they care about which is why any type of “a-thon” is so successful. Sponsorship becomes personalized and is a way for donors to help the organization via an ambassador—in this case, a writer who is willing to collect pledges and participante in a nine hour write-a-thon.
At the end of every exercise, door prizes were awarded which offered a delightful break and transition to the next hour. This year’s prizes consisted of a half hour astrology reading, homemade truffles, free workshops, stationary, gift certificates from independent bookstores, tickets to the theatre, writing software, and passes for yoga classes.