How To: Set Up a Fundraiser

Sometimes, Sponsors want to help their children above and beyond what they themselves can afford. Home improvement projects and educational costs can be quite expensive, even in the countries where the USD goes far. To accomplish these goals, Sponsors often set up an online fundraiser. Then, via the power of social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and MSC, they spread the word and solicit donations to their cause.

A list of fundraising sites* used by Sponsors in the past:

www.aurashouse.com – Aura's House is hands-down the best option for a fundraiser to benefit a child sponsored through Children International. Donations are made directly to CI, and Aura's House does not withhold any fee from any donation received. All donations are tax-deductible. There can be a long wait to have your fundraiser hosted, however, so plan ahead and contact them early!

www.firstgiving.com – One of the most popular choices of Sponsors, FirstGiving has a user-friendly interface that allows you to set up a fundraising page easily. Funds donated will go directly from FirstGiving to Children International when the fundraiser reaches either its goal amount or its end date. FirstGiving charges a fee: it’s 5% on donations, plus a standard credit card processing fee of 2.5%.

www.gofundme.com – GoFundMe differs from Aura's House and FirstGiving in that the funds raised go to the Sponsor conducting the fundraiser instead of directly to Children International. Like FirstGiving, it has a user-friendly interface. It also allows you to link your fundraiser to your Facebook and Twitter accounts, so that when you update your fundraiser it makes announcements across your social media automatically. GoFundMe charges a fee of 7.9% + $0.30 per donation.

www.crowdrise.com – CrowdRise is similar to FirstGiving. The money raised goes from CrowdRise to CI when the fundraiser reaches its goal amount. Setting up a fundraiser is very easy, and their interface is user-friendly. The fee is 5%, plus a credit card processing fee of 2.5% plus $0.30 per transaction.

*inclusion of a site in this list is for informational purposes only and does not in any way constitute endorsement of the site by Children International

Great! How Do I Know What to Send?

What a sponsor sends in a DP or an Online In-Country purchase is entirely up to them! In fact, that is part of the fun of sending a package instead of a monetary donation. There is no quick, easy way to find out what your family or child may need or want—Children International will not do an inquiry for these types of gifts. However, there are a some staple items that are well-received and appreciated by children in all of CI's countries:

-pens, pencils, crayons and markers
-coloring books

-age-appropriate fiction and non-fiction books
-scissors, construction paper, glitter, and other arts and crafts supplies
-powdered drink mixes like Crystal Light, Kool-Aid or Tang
-hair accessories and jewelery

-toothbrushes, hair brushes, nail clippers

-washcloths, bars of soap

-stuffed animals, dolls, toy cars

-educational books and flashcards
-a hand-cranked flashlight
-holiday items such as a Santa hat or bunny ears
-a small photo album to hold the photos you send over the years

To add a personal touch your package, consider first writing to your child. In your letter, you can ask such questions as, “What is your favorite color?” and, “Who is your favorite cartoon character?” In this way, you not only learn a bit more about your child, but also can then shop for items to match these likes.

If you want to send clothes, you can attempt to determine your child's size by comparing their height and weight on their family report to a size chart (I've had good luck with this one). It's not an exact science, though, and there's a chance the clothes you choose will not fit. They won't go to waste, though--our children and their families are generous with their blessings, and a family member or a neighbor will make good use of the outfit!

You may also include items for your child's family members. Extra hygiene supplies and school items are useful for siblings, while a pair of sturdy work gloves would be appreciated by a parent.

You should not send liquids, gels, or anything that could potentially break open and spill in transit. Additionally, some centers have items they will not accept for cultural reasons--Children International will inform you of any such restrictions when you request the mailing address.

Shopping Online In-Country

As an alternative to sending DPs, Sponsors have recently begun experimenting with the idea of finding vendors within the children's countries where you can shop online and have your purchases delivered to the service center, negating most of the shipping time and the risk of customs fees and holdups.

You will need to contact Children International via phone or email to request the address of your child's service center, which is where the package must be delivered. It's a good idea to then contact the site directly and ensure that they will deliver to the center before you place an order. The follow-up report, letter and photos from these types of gifts are the same as for a DP.

Below, you will find a list of known services by country (constantly changing and updating). A site's inclusion in this list is for informational purposes only and does not in any way constitute endorsement of the site by Children International:

Guatemala:
http://www.tuguatemala.com – The site is in Spanish, but it is extremely user-friendly and designed for people from other countries to send goods to their loved ones in Guatemala. The delivery fee for Guatemala City is $7. On the very last page before you submit your order, you can enter a note with instructions or a message. This is where I put in my girls' ID numbers and said that it was a package from their sponsor.

India:
http://www.tulikabooks.com/  – The website is in English, and they carry books in a variety of Indian languages.

http://www.prathambooks.org/ – Pratham Books is a not-for-profit book publisher in India whose mission is "a book in every child's hand." Their website is in English, and they carry books in English and ten different Indian languages.

Philippines:
www.PhilGrocers.com – Mostly groceries, but they carry other items as well. Flat shipping rate of $9.99USD in metro Manila. Charge for provincial delivery is USD 9.99 for up to 5 kilos of total weight. For each succeeding kilo, there is an additional charge of $2.00. The system will charge a flat $9.99 upon checkout and if the order is more than 5 kilos, an email with a link to pay the additional shipping fee will be sent. They do not deliver “raw, wet type of items” to provinces unless it is a canned item. 

http://www.nationalbookstore.com.ph/ – Similar to online bookstores in the US like Borders or Barnes and Noble, the site carries mostly books, stationery, and office supplies. Orders for delivery within metro Manila will be delivered within two to three days from the process date of the order. Orders to be delivered to a provincial destination within the Philippines will take three to five days from the process date to be delivered. The shipping charges are based on weight and destination, with metro Manila being less expensive than Tabaco and Legaspi.

Zambia: 

www.shopzed.com – “The Delivery fee is K80 (~$14.99) and the Convenience fee is K40 (~$7) per order. Additionally, a PayPal processing charge of 3% is included in your total price.” Under groceries they have a “packages” category with pre-made bundles of groceries and household items for a set price, and for most of the packages that price includes the delivery fee.

DP Tips and Tricks

Based on their own experiences, Sponsors have offered the following advice to make shipping your package to your child as painless and inexpensive as possible:

Mail your gifts in a padded envelope instead of a box. It's less expensive, and (supposedly) less tempting to thieves. WalMart sells yellow padded envelopes in a variety of sizes, up to 14.5” x 19”. A lot of goodies can be stuffed into one of these envelopes, but be careful to keep your package under four pounds or you will have to pay for priority shipping (USPS).

Mark your packages as a gift and a charitable donation on the shipping paperwork, and attribute as low a value as possible to the items inside. This will theoretically discourage thieves and draw less attention in customs.

Don't shop in thrift stores! CI may not deliver used clothing to children. Here is an explanation from Debbie Spring, Senior Sponsor Services Representative:

“The reason the staff requests no used clothing is because we've received packages both here in KC and at the SOA's that is stained, torn, faded, sewn back together, unwashed, have bugs in the box, used undies, etc. - basically things that many people would not want their own children to wear, but feel that a child with limited clothing should be thankful to receive. And in theory, it does seem that a child with limited clothing would welcome ANY clothing item...but in reality, no child (poor or not) wants to wear clothing that is poor condition -- even if it's free. The majority of families we serve have a real sense of pride and want their children to look and feel their best - just like us. All of this being said, if you have clothing that has been worn once or twice, or is in excellent condition and looks, smells and feels new, I personally, don't think that anyone would be insulted to receive it. And would not raise any red flags with the staff or family, because most sponsors take the price tags off the clothes they send anyway.”

How To: Send a Direct Package (DP)

While sending a SNG is more efficient, many Sponsors enjoy shopping for gifts themselves and sending DPs to their child(ren). If you are interested in doing so, you will need to contact CI via either email or phone to request the address for your child's service center, to which the package will be mailed. CI will provide you with any country-specific instructions you need, as well as advise you on any local customs or prohibited items for your child. To protect the privacy of the child and the Sponsor, CI will not provide the family's home address.

You may ship your package using any carrier you prefer. Be aware that packages can be subject to customs screenings, and can incur additional fees while in transit. CI will contact you to pay for these fees before retrieving your package from the carrier, so be prepared for the possibility of both the extra cost and the delay involved. For this reason, some Sponsors prefer to ship via UPS, FedEx or a similar international carrier. It is more expensive, but those fees are handled directly with the carrier and delays are minimized.

There is always the risk of your package being lost or stolen during transit, and for this reason CI can accept no responsibility for packages that never reach the children.

You will receive a thank-you letter and photos of your child with the items you have sent. The follow-up report will also include an itemized list of the contents of your package.

How To: Send a Special Needs Gift (SNG)

A SNG is an extra donation sent by a sponsor specifically for one of their children. The process for sending one varies a bit depending on how much you can afford to send and what you hope to accomplish.

Gifts of $50-$99 can be sent by logging into My Account and clicking on “Make a Contribution.” Select the “Special Needs Gifts” tab. Choose which child(ren) you wish to send the gift(s) and enter the amount(s) in the appropriate boxes. When you have finished, click the “Add to Basket” button. Then, if you scroll to the top of the page, you will see a new “My Basket” link, which you can click on to enter your payment information and complete the transaction. Gifts of $50-$99 are distributed quarterly, and you will received a thank-you card from your child.

Gifts of $100-$250 can be sent in the exact same manner as above. However, you are able to specify how you would prefer for the family to use the funds you send (ex. “Please take care of school needs for Bobby” or “Please buy shoes for Sarah and her sisters”). If you do not enter any instructions, CI's staff will work with the family to purchase what they need most. Gifts of $100-$250 are forwarded immediately to the child's center, and you will receive a thank-you letter, photos, and a follow-up report. Usually this takes six to eight weeks, though it can take longer depending on the schedule of the family.

CI Sponsor Services Rep Debbie Spring shared:

"If sponsors want to make SNG donation of $100-$250 they have the choice of letting the family decide how best to utilize the donation, or they can add a note to indicate what they want the family to use the donation for.  In either case, we encourage sponsors to simply make the donation without the added admin expense of memo'ing for a list of needs first.  We know that many sponsors are concerned that if they send $100, the family’s needs may total $150.  But in all honesty that can happen even if we memo, because we always have to attach a dollar amount to the request."

Larger gifts can fall into two different categories. If you simply want to send a larger amount with no particular project in mind, you can follow the directions for “Gifts of $100-$250.”

Expensive item-specific gifts (such as a refrigerator) or project-specific gifts (home improvements, education) are a little different. You can (and probably should) first contact CI either by email or on the phone and ask that they complete a Special Needs Inquiry (SNI). For example, say you have noticed that your child's house has dirt floors and you would like to pay for their floor to be paved. CI would complete an SNI to first find out if this is even possible (some families do not own the houses they live in, and cannot therefore make modifications), and will list the total cost of the project with a breakdown of expenses. Once you know the exact cost, you can donate that amount using the same tools in My Account. Funds are sent immediately to your child's center. For a single item like a refrigerator, you will receive a thank-you letter, photos, and a follow-up report. Usually this takes six to eight weeks, though it can take longer depending on the schedule of the family. For a project that takes a while, you may receive multiple in-progress reports and photos, with a final report, photos and thank-you letter when the project is completed.

CI Sponsor Services Representative Debbie Spring shared:

"If a sponsor has a specific need in mind that is likely to cost more than $250 (water or electric installation, home repairs, beds, furniture, etc.) we are happy to memo to find out the need and cost involved in providing for this type of Special Needs Gift.  Sponsors are able to deduce if a family is in need of these types of items based on the child’s Family Record (i.e. dirt floor, no electricity, no water, etc.)."

She added:

"We do our best to be consistent in our handling of sponsor requests. That being said we do look at each sponsor account individually to determine if it is prudent to memo. We look at things like are sponsorship fees up-to-date, have we forgiven monthly sponsorship donations recently, is the child so new to the program they are not yet receiving benefits yet, etc."

Introduction

Hello! If you've found your way to this blog, you are probably the proud sponsor of a child (or maybe several children) with Children International. As Sponsors, we have the unique pleasure of knowing that our monthly donations make a real and lasting impact in the life of an impoverished family. As Children International Sponsors, we also enjoy the ability to make a connection with our children via the letters they write and the correspondence we send in return. For one and all of us, Sponsorship is a truly fulfilling and humbling experience.

But ... what if you could do even more?

Children International runs a social networking site specifically for their family of Sponsors. Formerly called LiftOne, it's now known as My Social Center and has drawn a flood of new Sponsors to the ongoing conversations. Many of these new Sponsors catch glimpses of all that is possible as they scan through the posts and stories on the site, and they are filled with questions.

What is an SNG? How do I send a DP? How do I know what my child's family needs? How do I do a fundraiser for a special project for my child?

So I began gathering data and making lists, based on the information shared by other Sponsors on My Social Center, with the intention of creating a Newcomer's Guide that answered the most frequently-asked questions. This is an ongoing and ever-evolving project, and I am open to suggestions, ideas, and constructive criticisms of all sorts!

I hope you find this guide useful and that it sets you on your way to an even more amazing sponsorship experience!