We raised $6,515 this year. I was happy with that, but I have much bigger plans for next year!
I spent a day back in May doing some work for our local CFF offices and talked with another volunteer who had some great fund raising ideas that go beyond the letter writing campaign. One of the simplest things that takes almost no pre-planning is just spending a few hours outside Dunkin Donuts or a grocery store with a sign and some donation buckets. The man I talked to said that he and his family have been doing it for years, and when he averages it all out, balancing the sunny days with the rainy days, etc, it comes to $75/hour. That's not bad for just sitting outside a store! He said he didn't even approach people at all, so this is a very easy and effective way of raising money. I'm a stay-at-home mom, and $75 an hour is WAY more than I make at my job -- the benefits are great but the pay is lousy <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0"> -- so I'll definitely be trying this next year.