Harsh chemicals pollute the air, toxic liquids go down the drain. No this isn’t some mad scientific experiment gone wrong, it’s what many women take part in every time they get a perm! Lovely locks of hair being ruined by such harsh chemicals, not to mention the air pollution it makes. The days of bobby pins and rag curls are gone… or are they?

A terrific fundraiser that lets folks throw those harsh chemicals away for at least one day is hosting a ‘Green Hair Day’. While the bouncy curls may not last nearly as long, the absence of pollutants will have a definite effect on the environment! Gather up old clean sheets and rip them into 2 x 4 strips for rag curls. Buy bobby pins in various sizes for pin curls. Pick up some shampoo and conditioner if you plan to offer washing as well.

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A clean, green fundraiser to raise money and definitely raise community awareness for your cause is to simply kidnap someone. This could be a favorite teacher or coach, a minister or a community leader.

Select the hostage long enough before-hand for them to clear time on their schedule. Let them know what day, but not what time the kidnapping will take place. If they’re dressed in non-work clothing, such as pyjamas or gardening clothes, so much the better!

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Need an easy fundraiser that doesn’t require a big financial outlay or time investment but still brings good results?  Try collecting donations in coffee cans!  This is as green as it gets, both from the money point of view and the environmental impact.

Ask your friends, family, and fellow committee members to save their empty coffee cans and lids.  Make holes in the lids that will allow people to deposit change or bills.  Cover the cans with bright paper to make them eye catching.  Be sure to have your organization’s name and logo clearly displayed, as well as the reason for the collection.

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Did you know you can make tea with the power of the sun? Maybe it doesn’t take a whole lot of energy to boil water to brew tea, but even a tiny savings multiplied by a lot of people can make a huge difference. This fundraiser is fun, easy, and can get the community involved!

The first step is to find a source for inexpensive gallon glass jars. If you can get a local store or even a major distributor to donate ones with a spigot, you will really be able to maximize your profits! Also try for a donation of plenty of family size teabags, or the round teabags designed for use in iced tea makers.
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If you have a small local grocery that gets a lot of traffic, consider asking the owner or manager if you can have your group bag and carry groceries for a day. This is a great way to promote using Dodo Bags and to get some extra tips at the same time. Kids can help with this fundraiser, making it a great way to involve family and friends.

This fundraiser involves buying the bags ahead of time, so gathering sponsors to pay for the whole sale cost in advance is a good idea. Once the Dodo bags are delivered, you can set a date for sacking at the store. Have a few trial runs for the younger members at a group member’s home - they can practice sacking etiquette (not too many heavy items in one bag, bread on top, not bottom, etc).

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Gather your brushes, paint and canvas. Collect your saved Popsicle sticks, pull tabs, newspapers, buttons and old wrapping paper. Put on your play clothes and grab an apron. It’s time for a Green Art Show! When you have a passion for art matched with a love for your planet, you can hold a unique art show that pulls people in and makes them appreciate the Earth.

Start by inviting your friends and family. Ask them to create their own masterpieces with recyclables. Now encourage your town to join in. You can let teachers at the local schools in on the fun - have the students collaborate to make signature pieces of art from recycled materials. You can even hold a short drive in the week leading up to the art making to bring in stuff that otherwise might end up in landfills. Make it a challenge to create beauty out of old items.

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Open those doors and windows. Dust out those cupboards and linen closets. It’s springtime, time for renewal and fresh starts! What better way to give those old linens a new start than by creating something new out of them. Instead of throwing them away to end up landfills, try creating useful objects which can be used around the house. This is a green approach to recycling what you have, and turning it into something someone else can use.

If your group or organization has a few people who know how to run a sewing machine, you can easily produce some wonderful items. First, canvas the community for materials – sheets, pillowcases, towles, and old curtains can be laundered and used as raw material for many projects! Set about making potato sacks, hanger holders and onion sacks. Your ultimate goal in creating these new purposeful items is to host a kitchen and laundry helpful items fundraiser.
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With the advent of the popular cables series ‘Clean Sweep’ and other de-clutter shows, people are finally letting go of the stuff they don’t need, including even high-end items and collectibles. Most of these are donated to charity - why shouldn’t that be your organization?  Perhaps the folks in your town would be willing to donate their own attic treasures for a “Green Fundraising Event”; effectively reusing these items in a clean, green way!

Silent auctions are a great way to promote a fundraiser. Many donors have a set amount they come to the auction with, and you can set up the auction where the highest bid wins the item, with the remainder of the bids coming in as donations to your cause.
There are a few ways you can go about holding a silent green auction. You can host the event yourself, ask a local auction house if they’d donate the time and place for an auction, or commission an online auction house to hold the event for you.

If you chose to hold the event yourself, you’d need to seek out a location to host it, send out invitations, put out flyers, run an ad and arrange for all the items to be housed, photographed and cataloged. Then you’ll need to make sure you have a sign in book where the bidders can place their bid. This can be an expense, but by getting as much material, time and space donated as possible you can host your own silent auction which enables you to suggest a minimum price for items.

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Spring is a great time to have a party at the park!  If you are looking for a fun, green fundraiser, it’s a great time for that, too. Try something simple this year, and go back in time to when fundraisers were more about fun…

A box lunch social used to be the way a town raised money to pay for new hymnbooks for the country church, a furnace for the schoolhouse or lumber for a neighbor’s barn raising. This can still be a fun community get together that puts the ladies’ cooking skills to the test.

The job of the women is simple – cook a scrumptious lunch and decorate a box to hold it. Put a cooler block in the bottom to keep the food fresh, and choose foods that are best chilled – cold fried chicken or chicken salad, fruit or potato salad, fresh bread and homemade cookies or a wedge of pie or chocolate cake! All the wives know what their husband’s favorite dish is, and as for the eligible unmarried gals – well, this si their chance to spread some gossip about their best dish.

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A terrific fundraiser can be set up that is Earth friendly and engaging at the same time. Since it is a well known fact that people are nuts for pictures of their children, why not hold a photo shoot fundraiser?

Environmentally friendly photo paper and ink now exists that makes taking pictures greener than ever. Digital cameras and photo printers eliminate the need for film, and cut down on misprints. All you need is a location, a laptop, a transportable printer, a few digital cameras and plenty of batteries. Get a local office supply to donate the green paper and ink, or write a letter to one of the many manufacturers detailing your upcoming fundraiser and requesting a discount – usually all you have to do is ask!

Make sure your location has good lighting, and figure out some backgrounds and props.  Different colored sheets tacked to the wall and some children’s furniture (benches, a rocking horse, etc) can make the perfect photo studio. Add a few costume accessories like a cape, a feather boa, a crown or tiara and a cowboy hat, and you will be ready to start shooting!

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