Site owners, submit your site for inclusion in our fundraising ideas directory.

My Best Friend and Our Cell Phone Fundraiser

by Sean
(Staten Island, NY)

About a year ago my best friend recently learned his mother had cancer. She was like a mother to me. I went on vacations with her and she always made us dinner. Unfortunately she could not afford her hospital bills. Struck by the fear that "our mother" wouldn't be able to get treatment, we automatically tried to find a way to help.

We came across a fundraiser that offered money for old cell phones. Without hesitation me and my friend had big posters up on every street in this 16 mile town.

The response was great but it wasn't enough. I called the local newspaper to get the story out in the open and two days later it was in the front page! The phones started rolling in. We left drop-off boxes at almost every church in town. We couldn't believe it ourselves that we made enough to get her treatment. Altogether we made $16,000.

Because of all the work we did, I would like to believe that we kept her around long enough to see her kids graduate from college, which was all she wanted to see.

A tip I would give in starting a fundraiser is to really get it out in the open. Get the newspapers, local businesses anyone willing to support a good cause.