How To Get Food Donations For An Event

Sample Donation Request Letter For Theatres

Subject: The show must go on!

Dear ,

My name is and I work at the . For the past years, weve been putting on productions that showcase our talented actors and actresses and work hard to provide unforgettable experiences for our audience.

Currently, our cast and crew have been practicing and rehearsing to help bring to life. We are so excited to bring to the community, and we know its going to be a special night.

Last year, our biggest production, , brought in attendees in the audience. This year, we hope to bring in even more people to our seats. That is why we need your help. With the costs of piling up, its getting harder to put on the show that weve all envisioned.

Would you be willing to donate to help out our cast and crew? With that small gift, we would be able to , and bring us so much closer to putting this show on the stage. We would appreciate any help that you can offer.

If youd like to make a contribution of any kind, please dont hesitate to contact us at or to check out our website, . We have also provided an attached form for you to fill out. Lets start this conversation. The shows that we put on would not be possible without supporters of the arts like you.

Please, dont hesitate to visit us!

Thank you,

Nonprofit Fundraising: How To Get Sponsors For An Event

Before you figure out how to get sponsors for an event, the first question you need to ask yourself is: What kind of event am I holding?

There are two main kinds of nonprofit events. The first is what is known as a friend maker, in that the goal isnt so much about raising money you may even discover after the fact that you lost money in the short term. A friend maker event is designed to create relationships within the community with a long-range goal of finding donors for your nonprofit or building relationships.

The second kind of event is a fundraiser. The purpose of these events is to raise capital to support the programs and administrative costs that go into carrying out your organizations mission.

For fundraisers to be successful, its essential that you secure funding from area businesses and individuals. Youll also need a plan before you can determine how to get sponsors for an event. Asking for sponsorship for charity events can be challenging, but you can improve your odds by sticking to the following steps:

• Determine your event plan
• Honor sponsors at the event
• Follow up afterward

After we cover these steps, well go over five quick tips to use when asking for event sponsorships, including how to get local businesses to sponsor your event.

But first, lets look at some FAQs to give you a basic rundown on event sponsors.

Asking For Donations On Facebook

The Basics

There are over 1 billion Facebook users worldwide.

At least a few of your donors are likely included in that billion.

As long as youre posting regular content alongside your donation appeals, you can bring in donations simply by asking for them on Facebook.

Its a platform that your donors access nearly every day, so theyre far more likely to see a donation appeal status while scrolling through their newsfeeds.

Why It’s Important

Asking for donations on Facebook can be a quick and inexpensive way to reach a large crowd and directly point them to your online donation form.

Getting Started

Recommended Reading: Food Banks In Tucson Az

Tips For Donating Food After Events

There are safe, efficient, and legal ways for event professionals to provide leftover food to charitable organizations.

With most caterers building overages into their event plans, much wholesome, edible, and nourishing food goes to waste every dayand it doesnt have to. Event professionals who donate leftover food following events are protected under the law, and the process can be easy, safe, and streamlined. Here are five tips for how to make it happen.

1. Plan aheadDonating food following an event cant be an afterthought. Planners need to Integrate the intended donation into the pre-planning process, as they would any other event detail.

“Food donation starts with simple planning and strategies. Given the opportunity, before you sign a contract with a caterer, hotel, or resort, let them know that you are writing into the contract a sentence that states, ‘All leftover food, prepared but not served, cannot be thrown away, but must go to an antihunger agency, says Syd Mandelbaum, C.E.O. and founder of Rock and Wrap It Up, an organization that works throughout North America to recover leftover food. “We have found that most caterers work with 5 to 10 percent overage, so there is a good chance there will be leftover food to help feed the hungry in the city where the event is being held.

“It is important to note that the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Laws protect food donors as long as safe food handling is used, Mandelbaum says.

Guess The Jelly Beans

This super simple game is surprisingly effective and can run year-round. Set up jars full of jelly beans in local businesses, your fair booth, or at one of the above events. Players donate $1 to guess how many jelly beans are in the jar. Have them fill out a simple card with name and contact information. Prizes can include the jar of jelly beans itself or a portion of the cash raised. Its simple and fun, and the jelly beans make for colorful table decorations too.

Things to Consider:

• Do you live in a place where the honor system can be used?
• Can a donation box be set by the jar or do you need an attendant?

Also Check: East Texas Food Bank Programs

Car Wash With A Twist

This funny event is great for students. Donors can pay to have their car washed by students, but the catch is the car-washers cant use their hands. Community members will get great entertainment as the teens scramble to clean the cars with mouths, backsides, and feet. Its a good time for everyone. Make it more competitive and have the teens compete as teams. Donors can sponsor a team and compete for the prize!

Things to Consider:

• This is a great event to live stream on say a school website or student groups social media page.
• Have a photographer and sell the snaps to volunteers and parents later.
• Have the event in a local visible place like the school parking lot or city park.

Asking For Donations With Emails

The Basics

Emails are one of the most common ways for nonprofits to ask donors for contributions.

Most nonprofits send out emails regularly and send donation appeals alongside organizational updates and event invitations.

Emails are read on laptops, desktops, and mobile devices. This means that your nonprofit has the chance to reach donors nearly everywhere. Learn how to ask for donations with emails!

Why It’s Important

Sending out emails is also efficient and cost-effective, enabling your organization to reach more people at a lower cost than other methods.

Getting Started

The end of the calendar year sees a huge spike in charitable giving.

In fact, 30% of all annual donations are made in December alone!

The end of the year is the perfect time for nonprofits to start ramping up their fundraising efforts by asking for donations.

Also Check: Fulfill Food Bank Toms River Nj

Moving The Needle On Food Donations From Events

Workers transfer donated food from an Inforum event at New Orleans Convention Center to the recipient, Bethel Colony South Transformation Ministries, a substance abuse program. Finding good partners is an important part of the donation process.

Most convention centers are set up for donating leftover food from events, but often they dont because they believe they can get sued if someone gets sick from that food. According to sustainability strategist Aurora Dawn Benton, that belief is predominantly not true.

Dr. Aurora Dawn Benton

As long as the food is stored properly and donated in good faith to a nonprofit, the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act of 1996 will protect donors, Benton, founder of Astrapto, said Oct. 9 during the PCMA webinar, Busting the Myth and Moving the Needle on Food Donations. Benton, who earned a Ph.D. in business administration, social impact management, founded Astrapto to shed light on environmental and social issues in hospitality, meetings and events, and travel and tourism. She designs and implements sustainability programs, and offered advice on how planners and others can overcome obstacles and execute brilliantly on food donations.

While composting programs are a great way to use those event foods, often the leftovers still are in good enough shape to feed to people. The EPAs Food Recovery Hierarchy puts composting and landfill in the bottom two spots, prioritizing source reduction and feeding hungry people at the top.

Use Digital Tools To Find And Secure Sponsors

It turns out that this is a common problem for both event planners looking for sponsors and sponsors looking for events. Thankfully there are now a few reliable solutions on the market that can help:

• SponsorPark Best for corporate sponsors and events under the arts, entertainment, sports, festivals, and special causes categories.
• Sponeasy If you need a well-designed sponsorship desk, try this drag-and-drop builder .
• SponsorMyEvent Forbes and TEDx are just some of the brand names that use this search engine.
• OpenSponsorship This platform specifically caters to athletes, teams, and sports-related events.
• SponsorPitch Search their database, use their CRM, and export sponsor data with this collaborative tool.

Also Check: Midwest Food Bank Manchester Ct

Food Trucks Are The Best Catering Options For Nonprofit Events

Wheres The Foodtruck connects your organization with the gourmet food trucks in your area.

When we connect food trucks and nonprofit organizations, its a win-win.

Boost nonprofit fundraising when using food truck catering.

Your goal is to raise the most funds for your organization.

The better experience the donor has, the happier they are, the more likely they are to open their pocketbook to donate more.

Gourmet food trucks help provide a better experience.

Food trucks get to play a part of a worthy cause, and often make donations themselves.

With a food truck onsite, more donors will attend to participate in a unique event with quality food.

Nonprofit fundraising: save your time and energy for the goal: raise money.

Time is money, even in fundraising.

There is only so much time to collect donations, so the more time you have available to do this, the more donations you are able to collect.

When using a food truck to cater your event, you get a one-stop-shop for food. These professionals provide a better overall experience for you and your guests.

Youll also have more time to spend with the donors by having somebody else handle the food.

For more information, or to book a food truck for your fundraiser, visit this post that we wrote specifically about fundraising.

Set Up An Obstacle Course

All you need is some random objects and a big open space. There are several ways to raise funds with an obstacle course. You can charge a small entrance fee at the gate for spectators. You can also have teams or individuals pay to compete. Sell drinks, food, and event special-made t-shirts for your event. Have spectators sponsor a competitor, or encourage local businesses to sponsor teams. The possibilities are endless. Its a fun way for non-profit organizations to raise money.

Things to Consider:

• Obstacle Courses generally dont take long to do, so you may need to consider several rounds with different added challenges, like competing it as a handcuffed pair, running it with a blindfold, etc.
• This event also pairs great with a movie night, or a carnival setting with cookoffs.

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Sample Donation Request Letter For Church

Subject: Help lift our congregation higher!

Dear ,

As you know, we are and we are nothing without supporters like you. Thank you for continuing to keep us in your mind and contributing to our community. Every week we offer various services as well as host a number of programs and events to help empower and raise the people around us.

Lately, weve been trying to . This will help our community by .

Would you consider increasing your role in the church and donating ? We would greatly appreciate any help you can provide, and our community will recognize your generous contribution.

If youd like to continue this conversation and help us make the world a better place, please dont hesitate to contact us at or fill out the attached form. Additionally, our doors are always open and wed love to talk to you in person at . is always available to discuss future steps.

Thank you,

Donation Request Letter For Event

Subject: Help bring this years to life!

Dear ,

My name is , and Im part of the team at . Were hosting our annual . This event not only helps raise funds for , but it also will raise awareness for our cause across the community. Our previous events have .

Were proud to announce that this years event will be held on at .

Since the events inception, weve raised over , and this year, we plan on raising even more! So far, we are expecting approximately participants.

However, this event wouldnt be possible without the support of local companies who provide valuable products and services so that we can support our attendees and participants.

Would you be willing to donate to help make this years event possible? With your donation, wed be able to .

If you wish to support us, I would be happy to provide you with more information and . Feel free to contact me at or feel free to fill out and send the attached donation request form with your contribution and we can start our conversation.

Thank you for your consideration! With your help, were one step closer to !

Sincerely,

Also Check: Buy Food With Bank Account

Issue A Corporate Challenge

References

Before Asking For Sponsors Determine Your Event Plan

Nonprofit development teams can operate on autopilot by organizing the same events annually without adjustment. However, this approach wont help you grow your support base or get local businesses to sponsor your event. Its best to look at each event with a fresh perspective and a new plan.

You should be able to directly connect the activity and theme of your event to the mission of your organization. For example, you may think youll make lots of money holding a cocktail hour, but that wont work if your organization helps people with addiction issues.

Start by creating a message and designing a logo and name around it. Your event plan should also include timelines for specific goals, so that youll know deadlines for printing invitations, adding sponsor names to posters, or making deposits for venues.

Delegate tasks to your team of staff and volunteers so its clear whos responsible for what. Consider creating an online spreadsheet that can be easily updated so that no one accidentally approaches a business youve already asked for a donation.

If a volunteer is a frequent shopper at a store, have them approach the owner or manager directly. This will ensure that your message doesnt get lost with an employee who might misunderstand or forget it.

While everyone is responsible for spreading the word and garnering support, theyll need a game plan for understanding how to get sponsors for an event. Thats why each event plan also requires a menu of donation tiers.

Also Check: Second Harvest Food Bank Logo

Be Mindful Of The Chef’s Time

Einhorn notes, “I think we forget that time is its own valuable resource. Chefs need time to conceptualize and prepare a dish. Events take time away from business, friends, family, and life.”

Widjojo concurs, “Running a restaurant, we don’t get that much time off and our hours are painstakingly long, especially as owner-operators. From my standpoint, a lot of these events charge their guests anywhere from $200-400 per person and I feel that the restaurants that do come and participate in those events deserve some type of compensation for their time.”

Einhorn lends her viewpoint from the event organizer’s side. “As someone who has worn all the hats, nonprofits need all the help. No one is out to get the chef. These asks aren’t malicious, there’s just a lack of perspective. Organizers are just trying to help whatever their mission is. But they can’t just live in that lane and chefs can’t just live in theirs.”

Food Safety & Legal Liability

Food Safety

As long as your excess food was purchased from a licensed food vendor and prepared and handled according to food safety laws and regulations, we can rescue it! Feel free to review our Food Guidelines for more information.

Legal Liability

Donating food is legal and encouraged by the federal government! As a food donor, you are protected under the The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act when you donate food to a charitable organization, such as RLC. There has never been a lawsuit related to donating food. In addition, RLC provides a hold harmless clause in all of our food donor agreements.

Recommended Reading: Food Bank Of North Central Arkansas

Offer The Sponsor Incentives

Sponsorship has to be a give-and-take relationship. Sponsors want as much bang for their buck, of course. So what will the sponsors get out of funding your event?

Here are some ideas to help sweeten the deal:

• For trade shows or exhibitions, giving the sponsor a free booth.
• Place the sponsors name or logo on event promotional banners and flyers.
• Mention the sponsors company in your blog posts, email newsletters, and social media posts.
• Give event-related freebies or discounts to customers that purchase the sponsors product or sign up for its service.
• Include the sponsors logo in all of your promotional gear.
• Encourage your social media followers to like or share the sponsors content.

If youre willing to give more than take, it shows the sponsors that youre serious about making the event a success.