How Your Community Can Benefit From a Raffle Fundraiser by Dustin Blohm
How Your Community Can Benefit From a Raffle Fundraiser by Dustin Blohm
Growing up I was an active member in our local church – St. Peter the Rock – and was highly involved in functions held by members and groups of the church. Because of this, when I turned of age I joined the Knight's of Columbus; the Knight's is a charity based fraternal organization that benefits both the members of the organization and the community around them.
Like most charity organizations a funding source is needed. Given that the Knight's are a fraternal organization, most of our raffle events are based around a male population. In this particular case we were raffling off a .22 Long Rifle to anyone in the church or family and friends that bought a ticket.
In an attempt to maximize profits of the raffle we asked a local firearms dealer if he would be able to donate a firearm for the raffle. Luckily for our organization he was willing and able to do just that and we had the majority of the cost paid for by a supporter. Members of the Knight's were each given tickets to sell and we raised over one thousand dollars to benefit the community.
With this money we helped the community in numerous ways, including purchasing flowers for Mother's Day gifts for elderly women at our church and aiding church functions by supplying food and materials for holiday occasions. Along with that, we purchased a defibrillator and wall mount unit to make the church a safer place in case of a dire emergency.
Because having such a unit alone does little good without proper training, we were able to bring in an instructor to teach basic CPR and defibrillator usage to members of the church free of cost. The session took approximately an eight hour day but was highly informative and gave those who otherwise could not afford such a class to learn proper life-saving procedures.
Through this process I learned that charity was much more than donating money. Sometimes money is not so easily found and benefiting the community is a much more tedious process that takes tremendous amounts of preliminary work and aid. Also, money does not need to be given directly to a cause or person, as you can better the community through public devices such as the defibrillator or instructional opportunities. I was amazed to see how much participation there was in the free course offered and how accepting people were to donate their own time to making the church a safer place for one another.
When you look at the roots of the story, one thing stands out – it all started from a simple raffle. One raffle for a firearm brought in enough money the make the entire church feel safer and happier as we went about our typical business. One raffle, which can be repeated with so many objects or services, can better the community when it is coupled with a donation of time. Charity is not only donating money, or treasure; charity is donating your time and talents to an organization. One who can take the time and the ability to form and lead a successful raffle can give back to the community far more than one who merely donates their treasures ever could.
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Contributed by Dustin Blohm