My favorite time of year, school fundraising season. It drives me CRAZY. The schools send home some of the silliest things that they want kids to sell. We have those catalogs full of, forgive me but, crap. It all goes for at least twice what you would pay for it if you bought it on your own, most of it is not of the highest quality and a good portion of it is things you wonder why you would want/need to begin with.
Then there’s the cookie dough catalogs. Really? Cookie dough? I don’t want your prepackaged cookie dough, I prefer my fresh cookie dough, thank you very much. We’ve had noodles. Yes, noodles. Noodles of all shapes and sizes and colors and that last part is what makes them special. Get them in college colors or professional sports team colors or pretty colors or holiday colors.
I like yellow noodles; regular, plain, simple, standard noodles. I don’t want to spend 10x what the noodles at the grocery store cost to have colored noodles that are going to be eaten anyways. And the wrapping paper. Oh my goodness! Again, I can get a roll that will wrap at least half of my Christmas presents for a quarter what they’re charging for enough to wrap one gift! It’s insanity!
What else have I seen, the discount cards they’ve been offering aren’t the worst thing in the world. Ok, let me back up a little bit, some of the cards aren’t so bad. I bought one from a kid once that went to a school about 30 minutes from my house and it was one that you could only use in that area! Most of them that I’ve seen are for any location at least on most of the places it offers but this one was a list of about 10 businesses in that area ONLY. More than half of them have at least been worth the money spent on them, though. So, not the worst.
Oh yes, and the magazines. I’ve looked through those brochures for 5 minutes before trying to find a magazine I didn’t already have a subscription to that I might want. I started letting the one magazine I occasionally read’s subscription expire on purpose just to be ready for a kid to come selling magazines again so I would have something to buy from them.
With that said, I am incapable of saying no to kids. If they are selling something, I’ll buy it; even if I know it will never be used. I have started telling my own kids no finally. I used to buy things from every catalog they brought home and then I decided I just couldn’t do it anymore! I started basing it on what they money was specifically going to if they said for that particular fundraiser. Because I won’t lie, I’ve been quite irritated on what the PTO/PTA/PTCOs have wanted to do fundraisers for.
Over the last few years though, I have seen some schools doing more active fundraisers. I was so happy to see that for the first time a couple of years ago. All these fundraisers sell candies and cookie dough, noodles and restaurant discounts. This country is having enough issues staying healthy and gym classes have already been cut!
My youngest daughter’s elementary school was doing a ‘Booster-thon’ over her last couple of years there. They would get pledges for how many laps they would do with a max of 35 laps. The school also hosted their own ‘fun-run’ where the kids and family would come out on a Saturday, pay $5 and run a nice 5k course through the neighborhood.
This year, the middle school is doing a Color-Run. Now, THE Color-Run is a fun-run I’ve wanted to do for a couple of years now but it has ALWAYS fallen on a day that is not available. It makes me sad. So, I was quite excited when I saw the school doing a version of this. It is a full 5k DURING SCHOOL HOURS so the kids will want to do it and instead of having to get pledges, you just have to register.
That way – each kid that does register raises a certain amount of money on their own. Only one sale, one event. Easy. Active. Fun. Colorful. Genius. I was so excited to see that. I thought it was a great idea and love whoever the new PTO leader is for finding it/coming up with it. I only wish I could be there to see it! J
Then there’s the cookie dough catalogs. Really? Cookie dough? I don’t want your prepackaged cookie dough, I prefer my fresh cookie dough, thank you very much. We’ve had noodles. Yes, noodles. Noodles of all shapes and sizes and colors and that last part is what makes them special. Get them in college colors or professional sports team colors or pretty colors or holiday colors.
I like yellow noodles; regular, plain, simple, standard noodles. I don’t want to spend 10x what the noodles at the grocery store cost to have colored noodles that are going to be eaten anyways. And the wrapping paper. Oh my goodness! Again, I can get a roll that will wrap at least half of my Christmas presents for a quarter what they’re charging for enough to wrap one gift! It’s insanity!
What else have I seen, the discount cards they’ve been offering aren’t the worst thing in the world. Ok, let me back up a little bit, some of the cards aren’t so bad. I bought one from a kid once that went to a school about 30 minutes from my house and it was one that you could only use in that area! Most of them that I’ve seen are for any location at least on most of the places it offers but this one was a list of about 10 businesses in that area ONLY. More than half of them have at least been worth the money spent on them, though. So, not the worst.
Oh yes, and the magazines. I’ve looked through those brochures for 5 minutes before trying to find a magazine I didn’t already have a subscription to that I might want. I started letting the one magazine I occasionally read’s subscription expire on purpose just to be ready for a kid to come selling magazines again so I would have something to buy from them.
With that said, I am incapable of saying no to kids. If they are selling something, I’ll buy it; even if I know it will never be used. I have started telling my own kids no finally. I used to buy things from every catalog they brought home and then I decided I just couldn’t do it anymore! I started basing it on what they money was specifically going to if they said for that particular fundraiser. Because I won’t lie, I’ve been quite irritated on what the PTO/PTA/PTCOs have wanted to do fundraisers for.
Over the last few years though, I have seen some schools doing more active fundraisers. I was so happy to see that for the first time a couple of years ago. All these fundraisers sell candies and cookie dough, noodles and restaurant discounts. This country is having enough issues staying healthy and gym classes have already been cut!
My youngest daughter’s elementary school was doing a ‘Booster-thon’ over her last couple of years there. They would get pledges for how many laps they would do with a max of 35 laps. The school also hosted their own ‘fun-run’ where the kids and family would come out on a Saturday, pay $5 and run a nice 5k course through the neighborhood.
This year, the middle school is doing a Color-Run. Now, THE Color-Run is a fun-run I’ve wanted to do for a couple of years now but it has ALWAYS fallen on a day that is not available. It makes me sad. So, I was quite excited when I saw the school doing a version of this. It is a full 5k DURING SCHOOL HOURS so the kids will want to do it and instead of having to get pledges, you just have to register.
That way – each kid that does register raises a certain amount of money on their own. Only one sale, one event. Easy. Active. Fun. Colorful. Genius. I was so excited to see that. I thought it was a great idea and love whoever the new PTO leader is for finding it/coming up with it. I only wish I could be there to see it! J