How To Run A "Flocked" Fundraiser Event (With Free Printables) #RaiseLove

When I was in high school I stunk at Fundraising.

No, seriously, I couldn't even get to the first tier of prizes- you know, the little pom pom 'Weeble' pretty much anyone who sold a single item would get just for showing up and turning in their sales sheets?

Part of the problem was my lack of social skills, severe introvert anxiety, and a simple lack of care for the items I was selling. I mean, why should I sell something to raise money for a good cause when more, or all, of that money spent could go straight to the source that needed it most? It's something I've struggled with all of my life- raising funds without asking people to shell 9x more than the proceeds out on generally worthless junk.

Don't get me wrong- bake sales, and such, are awesome to get kids involved in charity- but there HAD to be a better way to have fun, get a charity talked about and seen, and generate 100% of the proceeds directly to the charity of focus.

So, when RMHC (Ronald McDonald House Charities) sent me a set of juggling balls with the challenge to #RaiseLove through a FUNdraiser that was uniquely mine, and clearly fun, I went searching for something different.

Somewhere on Pinterest I spotted a few poor quality snapshot collages of pink plastic flamingos in yards, while searching the term 'unique fundraiser ideas'. I clicked through to a few of the originating posts and found some really old content, and some intriguing content but no real directions on how to fund raise with this process. It couldn't be that hard, right? Buy some yard flamingos and start dropping them in yards, easy-peasy. I was sold.

As it turns out there were many questions I immediately found myself faced with when putting this fundraiser together. Questions such as; "How do I go about getting a yard sign that is weather resistant," "what's the best way to acquire a flock of flamingos without spending a small fortune?" "Since I am an individual, and not an organization with a charitable address, what's the best way to coordinate the donation process versus the flocking arrangements?"

Thankfully organizations, such as RMHC, have their own online fundraiser portals any individual, or organization, can set up to work as a landing page and direct donation portal for funds. It's as easy as visiting the RMHC landing page and registering yourself or organization as a "participant." From your participant portal you can set up a profile with information about you, why you're fundraising for RMHC, and how you plan on collecting funds. You can also set up a direct donation URL to send your donators to, where they can make a secure donation to your specific fundraising goal/efforts from a secure portal. Those donating love this because it provides them with peace-of-mind and an immediate record/receipt of their donation for tax purposes.

If you have those who wish to donate, but do not have access to the internet, or would rather do so by cash in the moment you can easily place a donation on their behalf through your RMHC portal.

If you are collecting your fundraising money directly, in person, through a physical organization or location on behalf of a charity or event, such as RMHC you will want to provide physical receipts for money exchanged.

Having the online portal to send your donations to is a wonderful tool, but you'll also need flyers to help spread the word, and to educate those you 'flock' about what you're doing.

This is where I found the least amount of information, in regards to running this type of fundraiser.

For your convenience I've gone ahead and turned my flyers into easy worksheets you can download for FREE here, as a printable PDF file. You'll find my Flock Fundraiser Advertising Flyer and You've Been Flocked Announcement Flyers already have RMHC logos on them (but can be easily edited if needed, or used for reference.)

On your flocking advertising flyer you'll want to clearly identify the different tiers of donations, and what your donators will receive in exchange for them. I chose to split my flock into 5or 10 flamingos for $25 and $50 donations, respectively. Just keep in mind, if you choose to offer 'smaller' flocking brackets you will need multiple signs to accompany your flocks.

Next, clearly outline how those interested can make a donation. Try to keep your flyer precise and to the point. Provide a direct address web,  address, or clear method of donating the money. Remember that donations made directly to the organization they are befitting, rather than being funneled through a third party, will make potential donators feel more confident in the legitimacy of your fundraiser.

Repeat, exactly, what your donator will receive for their donation- EX: "A donation of $25 will send 5 flamingos to the address of your choice for 3 days."

If donations are being collected remotely (online) give your donators a way to contact you to arrange the delivery of their flock. In my case I provided a secondary phone line we use mainly for data and various event/junk sign ups.

Another big question I had when planning my Flock Fundraiser for RMHC was how to get a hold of a large quantity of yard flamingos without investing a fortune.

You'll indeed find flocking 'kits' on sites such as Amazon, ranging from $175-$300. These kits will include your flamingos and a sign, or two, with generic information. The signs are pretty plain and you're paying a lot for the convenience of buying these things together, and to ship the bulky flamingos to your house.

I spent less than $50 for my sign, various supplies (pink printing paper, envelopes, fake feathers), and 10 yard flamingos.

I bought something called a 'Headline Yard Sign (18" x 24")' on Amazon in a 3 pack for just over $11, some 'poster alphabet stickers' for $5 at the local craft store, and drew/wrote the rest of my information in sharpie to create my Flocked Yard Sign. On the front of my sign I put my direct fundraising link, my fundraising phone number, and the organization I was fundraising for (RMHC). On the back I taped a plastic zipper file folder to hold extra copies of my flyers for the flocked family to pass out, or for neighbors to grab and take.

The flamingos were a bit more tricky to find- I found them everywhere for about $8-10 a piece. Be careful, there are some cheap sets but they are flat and made of corrugated cardboard. As it turns out a major home improvement store was selling the same flamingos they sell for $9 a piece in a 10 count for $32, so long as I was willing to wait about a week to have my order delivered to the store for free pick-up. You CANNOT beat that price.

In addition to your advertising flyers, yard sign, and flamingos you will want to have some sort of 'You've Been Flocked' letter to leave for or present the flocked household with. Something briefly explaining what it means to be 'flocked', how to continue the tradition with a donation, and what exactly you are raising funds for. Again, you can reference or use our FREE Printable. We included one of these letters, plus an advertising flyer, in an envelope with a few hot pink faux feathers, just for fun. Ideally you'll catch the 'flocked' home when you stop by to flock them, and present them with the envelope and an explanation, but you can also 'flock and run' and leave the envelope and your flyers tucked in the door.

Once you get rolling the signs in yards not only advertise your cause, and your program, but the people you flock tend to 'flock it on' and make a donation to send the flock onward. It's a fun social experiment and fundraiser, all-in-one.


My personal Flock Fundraiser is benefiting RMHC, Ronald McDonald House Charities, an organization that hopes to #RaiseLove through it's efforts to provide transportation and lodging to families with children who are undergoing an illness or medical treatment. This organization is near and dear to my heart because I was a child with a mother who was chronically hospitalized and know directly the strain intense medical treatments can put on a family. While RMHC helps support families with sick children, as a healthy child with a sick mother (Hodgkins Lymphoma) I remember the pain of my family's separation, and the financial strain of having to travel to her specialty hospital just to visit and support her during her times of treatment.

When a family member is ill, especially a child, it is every so stressful financially and emotionally and RMHC aims to help ease that strain by keeping families close together during these times.

When people set out to raise funds it's usually for a disaster or urgent cause that isn't very cheery. In the case of Ronald McDonald House Charities the organization wishes to inspire others to #RaiseLove by doing that which they love, whether it's a bake sale, juggling pledge contest, or pretty much anything else light-heated and passion driven. I've chosen to help raise funds for RMHC by spreading smiles all across my county, from one friend or family member to the next with a Flocking Fundraiser. I do hope this post has inspired you to look at fundraising in a new way, and hope you will reach out with any questions on Flocking Fundraisers (Also known as 'You've Been Flamingoed'). If you wish to learn more about RMHC please visit their direct hub, donations can also be made to my direct fundraiser on our #FlockVC RMHC Fundraising portal.

Generation McNugget- How Fast Food Is Changing For The Modern Consumer

Note: While I was invited to attend an event  held by McDonald's, during my trip to #BlogHer2016, I was in no way compensated for sharing the following information or story- it is entirely of my doing.

What Momma Told Me: Baby steps.

I'm not going to lie, when I was a little girl the biggest fuss over eating out was whether I'd finish all of my food fast enough to get the toy that came inside my Happy Meal. We didn't eat 'fast food' often. As a result there were little rules to what I could order or eat when we did, so long as I ate the majority of my meal. Trust me, Momma made up for it with 27 other days in the month full of heaping piles of vegetables and a rotating concoction of 'grown up food' (as I called it). Yes, fast food, especially McDonald's was always considered a treat, something to indulge with on special occasions.

Let's face it, up until about a decade ago the term 'fast food' had a negative connotation. I'll admit, whenever I was asked by a coworker why I had for lunch and named one of the major chains on the corner I felt a sense of shame. Why couldn't I have delicious food prepared for me on the go, at an affordable value and convenient time frame? Of course several brands have made great strides to restructure their menu, and re-evaluate their food sourcing and preparation processes, to meet the growing demands of conscientious consumers. If you'd have asked me in 2003 if I'd buying salads at my local McDonalds on lunch breaks I would have laughed as if you were crazy.

 We give chains like McDonald's a bad wrap a lot. Yes, it is 'fast food'- but fast food no longer means 'junk food.' It's a mentality that I daresay will yet take generations more to embrace. Are golden delicious, freshly salted, french fries still on the menu, sure. It wouldn't be McDonald's without french fries! But the brand has made efforts to expand on the convenience of their delicious sandwiches as meals and offer alternative sides, and a smaller standard portioning of french fries when ordered. This was one of the first steps the brand made where I truly noticed a difference.

However, the concept that their most delicious menu items could be enjoyed in moderation wasn't the only message McDonald's worked to convey. Over the past 10 years the brand has listened fervently to consumer feedback across the United States and worked to make dramatic changes to everyday menu items, while innovating lighter, health minded, introductions to the traditional menu.

I, including myself, found myself frustrated from time to time with how slow it seemed this 'industry' was responding to the rapidly changing lifestyles and quality demands of its' consumers.What I didn't know was that something as simple as adding apple slices to the Happy Meal menu took over 3 years to achieve. And the monumental 'breakfast all day' roll out? Just consider the logistics challenges of sourcing a regular supply of quality eggs for over 15,000 locations nationwide, essentially up to tripling the chains previous product demand! It's no small undertaking- but the brand has made it very vocal that they do not intend to let such hurdles or slow progression stop them from continually bettering their brand. While you may scoff, the brand is committed to providing 100% cage free eggs for their 16k locations across the United States and Canada by 2025.

10 years? Why is it going to take 10 years? Well, you just try to hold yourself to a quality standard, while contracting enough fresh cage free egg farmers to supply and feed the customers of over 16k restaurant locations every day. I'm not an expert in the field, but something tells me there may not even be that many cage free chickens producing in the U.S. at this point in time! It IS quite the undertaking.

Of course one of the way the brand can innovate and meet customers demands for consistently fresher, never, better ingredients and recipes is by adding regional or even seasonal menu items to their lineup. The California HASS avocado is a local treat I indulge in every Summer, but McDonalds wants to look into the process of sourcing them potentially year round for fresh guacamole with pico de gallo- yes avocados are used in guacamole on McDonald's menu offerings now- but the use of real HASS avocados would add an extra depth of flavor and quality to further elevate the menu.

Speaking of elevating- raise your hand if you have happy feels (memories) when you think of grabbing a Happy Meal as a child. That 4 count McNugget box was always my treat of choice, and nothing made me squirm with delight quite like dipping a freshly nibbled nugget into that little cup of sauce. McDonalds might traditionally be a 'burger' joint, but it's their famous golden nuggets that I find myself, and my nieces and nephews craving. A Happy Meal is not just an affordable and simple solution to meals on the go at crunch time- it's a tool for connecting and making memories.

The brand understands this, and as a result have made several changes to the famous recipe throughout the years. McNuggets get a lot of flack y'all. I get it. I, too, am always skeptical of any meat product that is not served in it's original shape. But I have to admit, I feel heaps better about treating my nieces and nephews (and myself) to a McNugget meal now and then knowing that the brand has now made it's commitment to use only antibiotic free (*antibiotics important to human medicine) chicken. This in addition to their ongoing commitment that McNuggets shall always remain free of artificial colors and flavors. So go ahead, dip happy.

Of course you don't have to crave 'fast food' to crave McDonalds- I'd say the majority of my trips over the past year were actually for something very 'not' fast food- a salad. And I'm not talking about a 'side salad instead of fries with my Big Mac' sort of deal- I'm talking a full blown, artisan inspired, entree salad like the Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad featuring a Southwest Vegetable Blend, Cilantro Lime Glazed Grilled Chicken, and Chili Lime Tortilla Strips. It jut so happens to pair perfectly with a McCafe Smoothie (which I hear is being tested with a Greek yogurt base!)

This 'food journey' the brand proclaims it's on is not one that reaches it's destination overnight. Then again, when you're working to change an entire industry, nothing does. We, as consumers think of McDonalds as a 'fast food' chain, and, as a result we expect the ingredients and food to be in line with the affordable pricing and speed. As it turns out, there is nothing fast or simple about ensuring the freshest ingredients and flavors make it to your local drive-thru window every day. Not only do I, personally, have a newfound appreciation for the business of 'convenient' revolution, but I feel a little bit of pride in knowing I choose a brand that is so actively listening to it's customers and striving to meet their needs. Now, tell me, what do you look for most on a fast food menu? Are you the type only heading in to indulge in something sinfully greasy? Or are you the consumer demanding fresher, more lifestyle driven selections on the menu?


What Daughter Says: Fast food has a bad wrap. But it's come a long way from my mother's childhood, and it continues to evolve for future generations.