Fundraising

Fundraising ideas

Hold a Bake Sale: This in an idea that never gets stale! We all love baked goods! Host a sale at school, work, church, the entrance to a local store, or any number of places! When people learn the proceeds will provide safe water in the developing world, they'll be happy to buy a cookie, cake or pie. You can also sell popcorn and drinks!
Plan a Dress-Up (or Dress-Down) Day: Everyone likes to switch it up at school or work! Charge money for people to participate. You can do theme days, like Pajama Day, Wacky Hair Day, Favourite Character Day, and so on! Perfect to combine with Halloween.
Work for Water: Do chores for charity -- window washing, car washes, gutter cleaning, grass cutting, baby sitting, snow shoveling, tree pruning. These are chores many people find difficult to do, and would be happy to support your cause. It's a win-win!
Organize a Yard or Garage Sale: Clean out unwanted items taking up space in your house or garage, and donate the proceeds to people who desperately need safe water. Organize a yard sale with your church, school, or community where people can donate items or book a table. You'll find that buyers are generous when they know the proceeds help provide safe water.
Leverage your athleticism: Run a marathon, climb a mountain, or initiate some other physical test, while asking family and friends to sponsor you with the money providing safe drinking water in Africa and Haiti through Lifewater Canada.
Donate a Day of Business: Business owners can donate their profit from a day of work, or offer a donation-matching program for clients for one day. This benefits Lifewater while showing you as a business owner who cares about your global community! This is especially effective if you work in a water-related industry like plumbing or drilling!
Hydrate your School or Workplace: Sell bottle or cups of water. Fill them with tea or coffee for even more profit! Every $1 gives a child safe water for a year!
Coordinate a Talent Show: Show off your talent, and host a friendly competition at your local school or church. This is a great way to raise awareness and money, while having a blast! This is a perfect way for younger children to experience the sense of empowerment gained from reaching out a helping hand to those in need. We know organizers of similar events who can share their experiences to help you get started.
Host a Golf Tournament: Gather friends, family, or colleagues and tee off for clean water! Groups have done this for Lifewater, and raised enough in one day for several overseas water projects! We can put you in touch with organizers of other tournaments.
Donate your Birthday or Anniversary: Make an appeal in advance of your next birthday or anniversary, asking friends and family to donate to Lifewater! Their gift to you can be a gift of safe, accessible water to a child or family in Africa or Haiti.
Give Lasting Gifts at Christmas: Gather your family together to make a donation to Lifewater, in lieu of the standard Christmas gifts. What a perfect way to celebrate the birth of our Saviour!
Share your Wedding: Celebrate your wedding by giving the gift of safe water to hundreds or even thousands of people! You can make a donation to Lifewater in lieu of wedding favours, or ask your guests to make a donation in lieu of wedding gifts.
Make Meaningful "In Memory of" Gifts: Enable your loved one to live on long after his or her passing by making a donation, and inviting others to make donations, to Lifewater in the person's memory. It can be in lieu of flowers or in other ways. You can also donate to Lifewater through your estate planning or planned giving.

Organizing your fundraising event

Once you've decided on the type of fundraising event you want, our Fundraising Kit will help:

It's important to decide how you want to collect donations. If online giving with credit cards is easiest, set up a special page on the CanadaHelps website. You'll find details in the Fundraising Kit's Online Campaign Instructions. Donations will be automatically assigned to your fundraising event as they are made so you can track them. If you are collecting cash or cheques, use the Fundraising Kit's Offline Campaign Donation Form to gather donors' names and contact information so we can issue tax receipts to everyone.

After your event, we can assign all of the money you've raised to a specific water project in Africa or Haiti, and provide photos and other details for you to share with your supporters. You will receive a project certificate, and your project will continue to be listed on the Lifewater Canada web site so you can monitor it.

The Fundraising Kit also includes Lifewater Canada Fact Sheets to share with your friends and family to help them understand why you are raising money for safe, accessible water.

And here are some other important resources to aid you in fundraising: