After running Randolph Elementary’s annual walk-a-thon for the third year in a row, PTA President Kathy Hansen wanted to do something different to encourage her participants to raise more funds than ever before. Months earlier, her children had participated in the school’s annual magazine sale fundraiser, but they complained that they didn’t win any prizes
As another school year draws to a close, we look back on a record-breaking year, and forward to new features designed to make your 2018-19 school-year fundraiser your best one yet! This year, we helped schools and other youth organizations raise more than $20 million, with kids raising an average of $140 each. PledgeStar’s automated
St. Hedwig School in Los Alamitos, California used PledgeStar to help raise more money during the school’s inaugural Jog-a-Thon fundraiser. Co-Jog-a-Thon Chair and PA Board Member Erin de Lucia was first made aware of the PledgeStar online fundraising system after hearing rave reviews about the service from one of her friends at Lowell Elementary School
Crocker Highlands Elementary in Oakland, California has used the PledgeStar system for the past two years. This year, they raised over $122,000; more than double the amount the school earned in the same event without PledgeStar. PTA member Colleen Orfuss researched several online fundraising platforms before last year’s Walk-A-Thon. She wanted a system that was
Last year, 745 schools and other organizations who added the PledgeStar online fundraising system to their pledge drives raised over $20 million. That’s 50% more than they raised before adding PledgeStar! Why not raise 50% more for your school or group? Thanks to feedback provided by PledgeStar customers in our post-event survey, we’ve added several
PledgeStar is always looking for ways to improve your fundraising experience, so you can work less and raise more. That’s why we tested two new innovative features this fall: text message pledge requests, and online address book importing. The results are in and we’re excited to report that over 100 schools raised 15% more than they
By utilizing PledgeStar to reach out to more friends and family, the Sunset Youth Football and Baseball leagues of Portland, Oregon raised tens of thousands of dollars. It all started when SYFL Coach Frank Krause was made aware of the PledgeStar system by a friend who had used it successfully at his school’s Jog-a-Thon. Krause
Two years ago, the PTA at Rogers Middle School in Long Beach, California hired an outside fundraising company to run their annual pledge drive. After the company took 50% of the school’s fundraising earnings, PTA member Leslie Anderson decided to run the event herself. Anderson learned about the PledgeStar fundraising system from a friend, and
For the past three years, Rumsey Station Elementary in Papillion, Nebraska has used Boosterthon, a full service fundraising company, for its annual Rumsey Run Jog-a-Thon event. However, after parents began voicing concerns over Boosterthon’s high fees, PTA member Kristi Waszak knew it was time for a change. “Raising almost $33,000 and then writing a check to Boosterthon for
Director of Advancement at Redwood Christian Schools, Mike Kady, has been running his school’s Jog-a-Thon for the last 21 years. This year, after researching online pledge drive systems, and being made aware of PledgeStar by his district’s superintendent, Kady decided to give the service a shot. For over 40 years, Redwood Christian has relied on
Now that school’s begun, it’s time to get serious about fundraising, and PledgeStar is the simplest, least expensive, and most effective way to squeeze every last dollar from your Jog-A-Thon, Walk-A-Thon, Read-A-Thon, or any other pledge drive. PledgeStar is an online fundraising system that helps raise 50% more from your group’s pledge drive by making
Several Corona Del Mar High School sports teams raised hundreds of thousands of dollars using the PledgeStar fundraising system. It all started in 2015, when Assistant Football Coach Kevin Hettig utilized PledgeStar for his team’s Lift-A-Thon. In the past, team members sent handwritten letters to family and friends asking for donations to pay for everything
When Stephany Dawson took over as co-chair of Cypress Elementary School’s annual Eaglethon fun run, she had one goal in mind: bring recess back to the school. The school’s playground facilities were virtually nonexistent, and students weren’t afforded the luxury of unstructured play. This led Dawson and other parent volunteers to take up the cause
Tom Renger became familiar with the PledgeStar fundraising system during his time as Kettering Elementary School’s PTA Treasurer. Their Fit Fest Fundraiser was a massive success, prompting Renger to apply PledgeStar’s services to his Cub Scout Pack’s annual Poinsettia Fundraiser. In years past, Cub Scout Pack members would go door to door in their community, seeking
The winners of the 2016 Playa del Rey Elementary School Spell-A-Thon weren’t just the top spellers in each class. The entire school won this year when they almost quadrupled their past earnings and brought in over $17,000 in donations! Kids were thrilled about the exciting magic show they were awarded as one of the cool
In 2015, SUMAC Elementary School raised close to $40,000 at their annual Jog-A-Thon fundraiser. Unfortunately, the school ended up keeping only half of those funds. The full-service fundraising company they hired to run their Jog-A-Thon charged fifty percent of all earnings – in this case, around $20,000! The next year, parent volunteer Megan Glynn said
For their fall fundraiser, Groveland Elementary volunteers wanted to do something unique and unprecedented in their school’s history. Not only did they want to raise money for their academic programs, but they also wanted to incorporate a learning initiative in the fundraising process. The result was a highly successful month-long Read-A-Thon, a fun and educational
Fifteen years ago, when the State of California budget cuts threatened to limit K-12 students’ access to extra-curricular subjects like music and art, a group of concerned parents decided they wanted more for their children. Along with the Del Mar Union School District, the parents worked to establish the Del Mar Schools Education Foundation (DMSEF),
To make sure their 5th Annual “Run for the Gold” Jog-A-Thon event was fun for all her students, Principal Teresa Wilkinson of Allen Elementary School made sure they all had a chance to win prizes even if they were not able to fundraise for the event. She encouraged students to bring in donations to help
When Dana Wakamoto was placed in charge of fundraising for the Wintersberg Sports Ministry this year she knew she had a big task in front of her. The youth basketball program includes boys and girls teams ranging from grades 2-8, and fundraises annually in order to keep costs down. Dana Wakamoto recognized the need for
Chestnut Charter Elementary School has been holding its annual “Fun Run” fundraiser for several years, but was never able to keep much of its profits, or raise much money at all — until now. In the past, the small school hired a big-name fundraising company, Boosterthon, to put on their fun run. In return, Boosterthon
With the help of PledgeStar, students at San Juan Elementary, a Title I Spanish Immersion School in San Juan Capistrano, exceeded their ambitious fundraising goal of $30,000 at their annual Jog-A-Thon in November, bringing in a total of over $37,000. As a Title I School, over 40% of the student’s families qualify for reduced price
In 2013, Wagon Wheel Elementary’s fundraising consisted of gift wrap sales, See’s Candy sales and a Jog-A-Thon that raised about $18,000 in donations from parents, family and friends using a traditional cash and check collection system. In the Spring of 2014, PTA President Kim Bernabe added PledgeStar’s online fundraising system to their Jog-A-Thon “just to
Findley Elementary School volunteer Leslie Hmura used some creative marketing techniques along with PledgeStar online fundraising to double last year’s earnings for her school’s jog-a-thon, raising over $110,000 in one fell swoop. The “Dragon Dash,” as the jog-a-thon has been named, consisted of over 800 grade K-5 runners taking turns running around the school’s track
