The Beginner’s Checklist to Hosting a Successful Fundraiser — or simply how to have fun on a budget
When I decided to be a blogger, I rarely ever imagined that I’d write about restaurants or food. My near-obsession with polysyllabic phrases and dutifully stacked library shelves had become a veil over my beautiful mind’s capabilities. However, when I asked my roommate where I should host our department’s final attempt to raise money for our ailing welfare coffers, he snarled with such surety, ‘’ Balsam’s of course! -you love that place’’
Every student loved Balsam’s.
Within moments, I cudgeled my brain with reasons not to host such an all-important event in the restaurant every student supped! It would ruin the prestige of the event, and surely mar my near perfect Engineering Students’ President tenure, but after much privileged reassessment, and nail-biting anxiety spells, I pulled off the most airily pleasing concoction of a fundraiser in the department’s history -now who said anything about a marred reputation?
I present to you the inevitable checklist; the 10-minute tick-along guide to replicate such ‘culinary’ success, and no, you don’t need to be an engineering major to pull this off.
Step one.
Forget all previous notions of restaurants being too classy, or in my case too crappy… if people love to be in there, it’s destined to do more than get their tummies full; it will wrench out wads from their pockets also. The gorgeous eating area will during your event be jumping with everyday-lunchtime bliss and jollity, and stir up endearment towards whatever cause you want funded.
It’s a common error to think otherwise.
Step two.
Your menu may just save the day. You can’t take chances with that one. Disregard the chef’s incessant offerings to blend together increasingly mad experiments disguised as food. Reserve such creativity for the waiting team’s costumes -I’d dare suggest you go all out on those! Keep it civil however. Your main menu may feature their favourite irresistible nibbles, before slowly jimmying them towards more unfamiliar delicacies. Never! (-notice the exclamation) present them with a totally new menu. It’s an early grave recipe.
Step three.
Now that you’ve gotten that crazy chef piped sober, your attention can be harnessed for more aesthetic-related function; the decor. Despite my earlier warnings reliably vocal about tampering with familiar elements, leaving the whole array as ‘blah’ as every other day is an equal let-down. I learnt this down the tough alley. Sure, only a madman would have pudding after your tongue-enrapturing menu has dealt its course, but madmen love fundraisers too… so expect a few. Keep this ensemble of guests constantly entertained while they feast both their tummies and eyes on lavish décor. Have them feeling glad-to-be-back comfortable, yet admiring the change in ambience the vamped-up décor brings. Spare no costs here.
Step four.
‘’Who was that MC again?’’
I would that you lay aside the minutest flicker of pride, and plead with Ryan Seacrest to be the fundraiser’s MC for the night. Yes, we all heard your thanksgiving speech at dinner last year, but Ryan’s was better …way better.
I believe you infer already what I seek to lay to in your memory; you needn’t MC your fundraiser if you don’t need to. Personally, I hang up my well-thumbed copy of Eugene Ehrlich’s Speak for Success so my best friend would liven up the night with his charm, reserving my choicest words for the ‘donation time’. Thank goodness I stayed by this decision, and finally decided the option where my guests’ happy memories of the night trumped my ego.
Step five.
Find a worthy distraction.
You may be sorry not to include a solid distraction to your program line-up for the night. It’s unlikely you could improve on the ultimate playlist of 2008, that I used, even if you attempted to dream it up, but you would not have outdone yourself if you include a Sinatra performance in the night’s lineup. We had a swell of karaoke session interlacing the proceeding, but then, we were mostly an all-student crowd. Your guests may lean towards a more mature gig, so this service may not apply here. Had I found a clown sooner, the karaoke may have been suspended. Focus here, on keeping your guest momentarily distracted from your inevitable goal of draining them off every penny.
And finally, Step six.
Remember to have fun, after all, you’re in a restaurant! On its own terms, a restaurant succeeds brilliantly to siphon money off its customer, now, having adeptly thrown in a superbly organised event you can gleam with laser bright pride at a successful fundraiser!
In tandem with your funding target, should be your desire to have fun too! Now, that’s something you never outgrow:
The inherent capacity to have fun…draising!
