SUPER Fundraising idea!

Ah, yes, the annual Super Bowl Party. It always seems most people watch the “big game” at someone’s house. It makes for an easy place to enjoy the game, some good food and keep a close eye on the hilarious commercials. Better yet, it provides a BIG opportunity to fundraise for Best Buddies!

Here’s a sure-fire way to raise at least $650 for Best Buddies by hosting a Super Bowl Party for 20 people!

1. If you sponsor the food and drink, and buy it in bulk, you can realistically buy food for 20 people for around $100 (cost effective items to make: chili, queso dip, “smokies,” buffalo chicken dip”)

2. Have all of those who attend make a donation of $25 to Best Buddies, which INCLUDES one $5 “square” for the ever-popular Super Bowl Square Game.

3. At the party, sell the additional 80 squares (to make 100 total) to the attendees of the party. Pay out the person who has halftime score correct 10% of the pot, the final score 40% of the pot, with the other 50% of the pot going to Best Buddies! The payouts should be $50 for the halftime score winner, $200 for the final game winner, and $250 for Best Buddies. Usually the winners of the pool will end up donating some or all of the money to Best Buddies anyway!

4. For those that aren’t into football, have optional board boards to get their competitive juices flowing. The winner of these games (a Scrabble tournament, knockout Apples to Apples) can also throw $10 into a pot with ½ the proceeds going to Best Buddies!

There you have it! In this scenario, if you pull off this modest super bowl party you will fundraise lots of money for Best Buddies!

Fundraising Tip: Le Tour de France!

Alright Hearst Castle participants – if you haven’t gotten started with you fundraising OR want to add a little extra to what you have raised already– now is the perfect time! With another week to go of the biggest race in the cycling world Le Tour de France gives you a few, creative fundraising opportunities.

1. Throw a viewing party for your friends. Have each person donate a small amount ($20 or more) and then watch the pros as they pedal through their three-week journey around France. Now is the perfect time to plan a Finale Viewing Party!

2. Start a friendly pool with friends, family and co-workers, making bets on who will win the whole thing! To make sure this helps you raise funds, let your Coach know your plans, and we can send you some loot for the winners. Everyone chips in $20, which will count as a donation towards your fundraising goal, and the winners will receive Best Buddies jerseys, riding gloves, etc!

3. Organize a Tour-de-France spin-a-thon. Create a French music playlist to spin to, and take a 20-mile stretch from that day’s course to mimic. Basically, as you are spinning away, the pros are doing the same. Charge an entry fee and sell raffle tickets for people to bet on what the day’s best time will be. Donations go to you; winner wins a Best Buddies jersey.

Happy viewing and happy fundraising!

FUNDRAISING TIP: An Inspiring Update

For this week's Fundraising Friday blog entry - I decided that instead of providing a fundraising tip or suggestion - it would be more beneficial to share with you some exciting and inspiring news:

The 2010 Audi Best Buddies Challenge Hyannis Port has reached incredible milestones this week!

- We have already surpassed our total number of participants from last year.

- Our participants have already raised more than TWO MILLION dollars which is already funding friendships, job placements, and leadership development throughout our Best Buddies Chapters.

-We are receiving more and more donations, checks, and matching gifts each day and are right on track to make this year's event the biggest and most successful to date!

Thank you to all of our Hyannis Port participants, donors, and supporters who continue to help us exceed our goals. We are so excited to see what the next two months of fundraising will bring!

And to the Hearst Castle folks - pretty inspiring stuff huh? Let's see what you all can do this year!

Shed the Weight

Training Tuesday is back again with our resident former-Pro cyclist, Richard Fries. Here's his take on training nutrition and weight loss.

Shed the weight. Bike riding is all about the power-to-weight ratio. Training will increase the power but can also increase the appetite. Many beginner cyclists struggle with weight loss. There are a few tips from pro cyclists to help.

• Fill your kitchen with healthy food.
• Try smoothies with protein powder as the first thing you consume after a ride. That will knock down the hunger.
• Soup's on. Clear broth soups are full of nutrition, filling, and low fat. A great lunch during training.
• Hydrate. A lot of time people confuse thirst with hunger. Drink water.
• Salad, salads, salads. Enjoy salads with chicken or fish a few times each week as your main meal.
• Cut back on the booze. Beer and wine are fine in small doses but have a lot of calories. And their consumption leads to other bad snacking habits.

Those tips usually work to keep weight down. And remember that simply riding makes your body crave healthier food.

5 Steps to $500

In case you missed this tip in the Newsletters that we sent out last week, we wanted to remind you just how easy it is to start your fundraising and raise $500 or to add $500 to your already existing fundraising dollars!

Check it out and GET STARTED TODAY!

From $0 to $500: The 5-Step Fundraising Fix
1. Start by sponsoring yourself - $50
2. Ask 4 family members to sponsor you at $25 - $100
3. Ask 10 friends to sponsor you at $20 - $200
4. Ask 5 co-workers to sponsor you at $10 - $50
5. Ask 4 local businesses that you frequent for $25 donations - $100

You can do this in a weekend, and just think about what would happen if you asked each person for $5 to $10 more than we suggest…the donations will roll in before you know it!

Training Tips from a Pro

Our resident former pro-cyclist, and all around bike guru, Richard Fries, will be offering up some training tips for the Challenge community as we get closer to our Hyannis Port event (on June5th)! Read on for some words of wisdom...

Little rides add up. Ride your bike as often as possible during weekdays. Ride to the supermarket. Ride to the kids' baseball game. Ride to your friends' barbecue. And perhaps best of all, ride to and from work. You would be surprised how simple, fun and easy commuting can be especially for a busy person.

With a little bit of planning, the time we spend stuck in traffic or waiting for transit can become your training time. Take some time to map out interesting routes. You'll discover a whole new network of roads and trails that are off the highway.

A ride of 10 miles or less in a metro area usually is faster by bike than any other means. So get to work and get fit.

Team FUNDRAISING Events Taking Off

With the Audi Best Buddies Challenge: Hyannis Port coming up in just two months we are starting to hear about some teams that are really starting to kick their fund raising into gear!

We wanted to feature a few of the events we have heard about so that you can attend, host a similar event for your own fund raising efforts, or share what you are doing with us!

If you have any questions about the events listed below or would like us to feature your upcoming fund raising event please email kellybeatty@bestbuddies.org

TOMORROW SATURDAY APRIL 10th - Team William Spin-a-Thon at Fitness For You in North Andover, MA at 12:00 pm.

WEDNESDAY APRIL 14th - Toole Time Fundraiser at the Mayflower Brewery in Plymouth MA from 5:30 - 7:30 pm.

SATURDAY MAY 1st -Richard Berman's Twilight Showcase Live Fundraiser at Second Church of Plymouth in Plymouth MA from 4:00 - 7:00 pm.

THURSDAY MAY 6th - Team UPS Fundraiser at Dedham Health and Raquet Club in Dedham, MA from 6:00 -8:00 pm.

The fundraising dollars for Best Buddies are rolling in - keep up the great work and don't forget about our training ride THIS SUNDAY!

FUND RAISING TIP: Train and Fund raise...Fund raise and Train

Hello Again - it is time for this week's Fund raising Friday tip!

This week I am suggesting Fund Raising while Training at the same time! You may wonder how this can be possible and the simple answer is...ERRANDS!

Friends, neighbors, co-workers and just about everyone you come in contact with each day is probably pretty busy so why not offer to run some errands for them and do this on your bike?!

Ride into town with a backpack on your back to pick up a few grocery items that a neighbor needs. Hear a co-worker complain that she doesn't have enough hours in the day to get to the post office? Offer to ride to the post office on your lunch break and take care of all her mailing needs!

You get the picture - you can help people out while getting a training ride in and in gratitude of the errand you run for them - ask people to go on home and make a donation on your personal fund raising page or write you a check to Best Buddies on the spot.

Here in Boston it is supposed to be cold but nice this weekend so get out and train and run a few errands at the same time!

Finally, some sun!

So for all of my fellow New Englanders, we are finally seeing the first indications of spring. Sun, little flower buds, warmer days...longer days, and people - outside and loving it. If you are like me, you are dying to get out there for lunchtime, after work, even earlier in the morning, just because you don't need a hat and gloves anymore.

This also means it's time to get back on your bike to get training. Here's Boston.com's listing of a few Boston-area bike routes that are great options to try...ENJOY!

http://www.boston.com/thingstodo/gallery/bikes/

FUNDRAISING TIP: Do What You Love...Love What You Do

When brainstorming fund raising ideas for the Audi Best Buddies Challenge - don't forget about your hobbies, skills, and the things you enjoy doing the most.

While emails and letters are great why not put a little FUN into FUNd raising?!

Here are some examples:

If you enjoy baking - offer to bake and deliver a different type of cookies each month for a year for a donation of $200.

If you enjoy gardening - invite friends, neighbors, and co-workers over for a "how to session." Ask for a $25 donation for the session and then offer advice on what flowers, plants, and vegetables folks should think about buying this year and even do a demonstration.

If you enjoy children - offer to babysit so that friends can enjoy a night out. Let them know that half (or all) of what they pay you will be going towards Best Buddies and they will be sure to be extra generous!

If you enjoy golf - why not organize a fun tournament at your local club? Golf season is about a month away so planning now would be perfect

And last but not least...if you enjoy taking part in March Madness (as I do!) consider asking for a donation towards Best Buddies as the entrance fee for your bracket or have the winner talk half and Best Buddies take half.

This list could go on forever; keep in mind that fund raising really can be fun when you do the things you already enjoy!