It may just be brought on by a bout of hormonal emotion, but yesterday evening and today I have felt great discouragement about my 3Day journey, especially the fundraising efforts. Over the long weekend I addressed envelopes to all our extended family, and I also edited my fundraising letter, mostly by trimming it considerably. Last night, and really the night before, my mom raised the issue that I should not ask for a donation of $50, because she knew some in her family would not be able to do that. I told her, several times, that those who run the 3Day have said that it's best to name a figure, instead of just saying "give what you can", which is what she was wanting me to put. (I think I see where the fundraising advice is coming from--we as outsiders do not really KNOW anything about anyone else's financial situations or their ability to afford anything.) She, as usual, would not listen to me. Sometimes I feel like I am the only positive person here. My mother, and as a result, my grandnephew, is angry a lot and very negative. I am doing my best to keep a positive mindset about this whole process, but it is very difficult here, because I seem to fight opposition at every turn. It seems like no matter what I say at times, it starts an argument with one of them. My grandnephew in particular has a very short fuse. I avoid conflict here at every turn; yet sometimes it cannot be avoided, like when I am alone with the boy.
Also this weekend, I edited my letter a bit and distributed it to some at my church, along with my donation forms. I am going to print them out and put them in some mailboxes around my home, which is in a lakeside community where a lot of summer people come up on the weekend. I have also sent out several emails to friends. I have kept my facebook status and twitter status mainly about the 3Day, always including my fundraising link, yet they have resulted in NO donations. The only donations I have gotten as yet have been from a girlfriend at church, my neighbor, and from a friend of my virtual pet Elizabeth. I do not know how else to promote this to my friends. I have thought of sending them all personal emails. I am totally underwhelmed at their response, and totally disappointed. I was also hoping to spread this abroad at our church some, but I could never get a firm answer from our leadership about doing it. I had the thought of trying to get someone to walk with me, so I am not in Atlanta in October among a sea of strangers, but I couldn't get anyone to even express interest. Again, I am totally disappointed.
I am hoping to take advantage of the increased population in our neighborhood until Labor Day by possibly having a pink lemonade stand and maybe selling homemade pretzels and other baked goods. My grandnephew could help me. I am loving the fundraising ideas I hear from the 3Day community, but most of them take money to do or put on, and that is in short supply here.
I have to fight this discouragement with all that is within me, and remember "God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!" (Eph. 3 20).
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I'm so sorry that you're frustrated when you've been working so hard!
ReplyDeleteOne of my teammates was feeling similarly frustrated with her fundraising. The best thing that I can tell you, which is what I told her, is that there is still a lot of time. What I have discovered over the years is that most people don't donate right away. They know your event isn't until October, so many of them are probably waiting until closer to the event to donate.
It can be helpful to set deadlines for reaching various milestones. Something along the lines of "I want to reach $1000 by July 4th. Can you help me reach this goal?" That gives people more of a timeline to follow and might speed up the giving process.
I would also suggest looking into hosting a direct sale along the lines of Tastefully Simple, Pampered Chef, Mary Kay, Avon etc. As far as I know, it doesn't cost anything to host an event and those events often have an online component to them as well. Then you can donate your portion of the proceeds as the host to your fundraising. With your strong church community, it could work well for you.
You could also ask your church members to donate goods for a yard sale with the understanding that all proceeds go towards your sale. That could also bring in some money from your summer visitors!
Just keep plugging away and you'll get there. Win over your negative nabobs by succeeding in the face of their doubts. You can do it!
~ Kristen
PS - I've never set a donation amount unless I am doing a small contest with a $10 entry fee. I prefer to ask people to give "the amount that is right for you".