Fundraise > Shopping

Order team t-shirts or other items for your group at the Walk and make money for PUW in the process.

Mywalkgear.com creates custom t-shirts, hats, hoodies and any other items you may want to customize for your team. There is no minimum order. They offer a 20% discount on prices listed on their website and will donate 10% of all sales to the Unity Walk. Make sure you enter UNITY20 under Discount Code.

Shop online using these links and the Unity Walk will receive a referral donation.

Etsy
Check out the felt dopamine heart pins and ornaments at http://www.etsy.com/shop/whatnomints. The crafts person who makes these items will donate 25% of all sales to the Unity Walk.

Amazon
Shop on Amazon using this link and the Unity Walk will receive a referral donation from your purchase.

GoodSearch
Download the GoodSearch – PUW toolbar. Each time you search the web with GoodSearch's Yahoo-powered search engine, about a penny will go to the PUW. Also, every time you shop online at 1,000 participating stores including Amazon, eBay, Target, Apple, Staples, Expedia, etc., a percentage of your purchase will be donated to the Walk! The site also has thousands of money-saving coupons!

eBay and MissionFish
eBay sellers are encouraged to give a percentage of their proceeds to PUW when they list an item for sale. Participating sellers are rewarded for their generosity with special eBay Giving Works features that help them get more bids and higher sale prices. The PUW will receive recognition in the listing and benefits from the seller’s success. For more info, please visit MissionFish.

Order team t-shirts or other items for your group at the Walk and make money for PUW in the process.

There are so many ways to raise funds for the Parkinson’s Unity Walk – large and small. Some are new and others stand the test of time.

Think about who you are connected to. They are more likely to be willing to help. We know participants who have created events in collaboration with their yoga instructor, favorite restaurant owner, the staff at their dentist’s office, and the local minor league baseball park, to name just a few.

You can create a fundraising event, whether you plan to attend the Walk in New York or live at a distance and are unable to join us in Central Park in April. Either way, an event in your local community supports your fundraising efforts and raises funds for Parkinson’s research.

Here are just a few of the fundraising events you may want to consider creating:

Art show
Bake sale
Bar crawl
Bike ride
Book sale
Bowl-a-thon
Car show
Car wash
Concert
Dog walk
Dress down day at work
Fashion show
Garage sale
Golf outing
Host a party in honor of a milestone celebration
Karaoke night
Pancake breakfast
Partner with a local merchant to donate a percentage of their proceeds for one night or a series of nights – a restaurant, bar, store or sporting venue
Poker night
Raffle
Run
Softball tournament
Spaghetti dinner
Super Bowl party
Team t-shirt sponsors
Tennis tournament
Walk
Wine tasting
Let us know about your event so we can feature it on our Stars in Action page.

Brainstorm with your friends and family. Come up with an idea that is fun, manageable and has buy in from those who are prepared to work on this with you.

Prepare an event budget as part of your planning process.

Figure out how you are going to pay the expenses associated with your event. Do you plan on:

Approaching sponsors for monetary and/or in-kind donations? What benefits can you offer your sponsors? Have your written material prepared when you approach them.
Providing documentation to a sponsor of the Walk’s status as a non-profit organization? You can provide them with the PUW’s EIN # 13-3842415 or contact the PUW office to request a copy of our 501(c)(3).
Paying the expenses yourself or together with a group of supporters?
Using donations to pay for the expenses associated with your event and donating the net proceeds to the Parkinson’s Unity Walk?

What is your plan to raise money?

Will you charge an admission/registration fee?
Will there be one level or tiered admission/registration fees?
Will you encourage discretionary donations?
Will there be a raffle drawing, Chinese auction, 50/50 raffle?
Will you charge for food and beverages?

Work out the logistics – date, time, place, venue, space constraints, etc. Leave yourself enough time for planning depending on the complexity of the event.

Contact the venue to confirm their requirements to secure the space (e.g., permits, deposits and applications). Possible venues include but aren’t limited to schools, parks, places of worship, bars, and restaurants.

Contact the PUW office to discuss your plans or if you need any assistance.

Spread the word! Develop a strategy to promote your event.

You now have the option of downloading the PUW logo from a link on “My HQ”. Individual participants and teams may use this logo on any printed and web based materials used to promote your fundraising event on behalf of the Unity Walk (e.g., flyers, posters, individual fundraising events on behalf of PUW, or team t-shirts.)
Publicize your event through email, Facebook, twitter, flyers and posters in your community.
Prepare a press release and send it to the news media in your local community.
Post on online community calendars.

Add your event to the PUW calendar

Enjoy your event and take satisfaction in knowing that you have raised funds for Parkinson’s research!

All checks should be made payable to the Parkinson’s Unity Walk.

Cash donations should be converted into a check or money order.

Collect checks and cash and create a list of all donors and the amounts they contributed. Indicate if you want your donors to be contacted by PUW by mail or email in the future.

Mail all checks to the Unity Walk office or bring them with you the day of the Walk. Clearly indicate whose fundraising efforts the donations should be allocated to.

Those attending your event may also donate online. Make sure they know which walker they should sponsor.

Donations need to be allocated to registered participants, not a team. If you would like the donations from an individual fundraising event to be allocated to more than one walker or team member’s fundraising efforts, you need to bundle the checks and indicate which walker or team member gets “credit’ for each bundle. The same applies to the list of cash donations – indicate which donations get credited to each walker or team member.

Donations to the Unity Walk are deductible to the extent allowable by law. PUW will mail an acknowledgement letter to all donors whose name and address is complete and legible. Only a qualified non-profit organization can provide this acknowledgement for tax purposes.

All donations received and entered by 5/28/12 will be allocated to the 2012 Unity Walk.

2012 PUW Prizes

Raffle drawings will be held on the day of the Walk. Winners will be announced on our video highlights.
(Donations must be received by 4/20/12)

For all fundraisers who raise $75 or more
A raffle drawing will be held for your dream vacation valued at $5,000

For the top 50 team captains
You will be entered into a drawing for a $500 Visa gift card

Top Fundraising Prizes
(Donations must be received by 5/28/12)
Winners will be determined in early June and notified directly. Announcement of the winners will be posted on the Unity Walk website.

For the team captain of the top fundraising team
A $1,000 Visa gift card

For the top individual fundraiser (team captains not eligible)
A $750 Visa gift card

For the team captain of the top rookie team*
A $500 Visa gift card

A raffle drawing for team captains of all teams raising $2500 or more*
A $500 Visa gift card

*Intended to support their team’s fundraising efforts. Use the prize to pay for team t-shirts, team member’s travel to or accommodations at the Walk, a celebratory meal or come up with other creative ways to support your team. How the prize is used is at the Team Captain’s discretion.

EMAIL TEMPLATES

FUNDRAISING LETTERS

Instructions for offline letter writing campaign

Sample fundraising letter – walker

Sample fundraising letter – team member

Sample fundraising letter – team captain

Sample thank you letter – walker

INDIVIDUAL FUNDRAISING EVENT LETTERS

Individual fundraising event – sample sponsor request letter

Individual fundraising event – sample thank you letter to sponsors and donors

Individual fundraising event – budget tracker

WALKER RESOURCES

Click here to download the PUW 2012 Brochure, and other important forms and PUW flyers.
Customize t-shirts!
Click here for other fundraising ideas.
Login to "My HQ" for other tools in your personal event headquarters.

ABOUT PUW

You may use the links on our About Us page to learn more about the Walk or to send information to potential donors and sponsors.

Make it official:
Download the PUW logo from your To Do List in “My HQ.” Individual participants and teams may use this logo on any printed and web based materials used to promote your fundraising event on behalf of the Unity Walk.

Create your own fundraising event:
Create your own fundraising event to benefit the Unity Walk - as an individual or a team. The ideas for these events are generated by and organized by our participants.

Fundraising Event Ideas
10 Steps to a Successful Fundraising Event Check List
Submit Your Donations After Your Event
Check out our Stars in Action page for other event ideas.

Fundraise with Facebook:
Raising money for the Parkinson's Unity Walk just got even easier! Login to "My HQ" and add the Parkinson's Unity Walk Facebook application to easily extend your fundraising efforts to your network of friends on Facebook.

Matching gifts:
The easiest fundraising you’ll ever do. Remind your donors to ask if their employers have a Matching Gifts Program. Matching gifts can double their donation. Encourage them to contact the Human Resources Department at their company or organization. The Unity Walk staff will process the matching gift forms once they are sent to our office but donors first need to ask their employers how to get the process started. The PUW's EIN is 13-3842415.

Order team t-shirts or other items for your group at the Walk and make money for PUW in the process. Click here to learn how.

Milestone celebrations are a great way to raise money:
Approaching a milestone birthday or anniversary? Getting married? Ask your friends and family to donate to the Unity Walk in lieu of a gift.

Request brochures and/or brochure holders:
Order brochures and holders to raise awareness about the Unity Walk and your fundraising efforts. Be creative about where to leave these brochures – your place of business, doctor’s office, local gym, coffee shop, cleaners, etc. Look for community bulletin boards in your area. Always obtain permission before leaving the brochures. Be sure to add your name to each brochure if you want to receive Walker credit for the donations.

Shop and a percentage comes back to PUW. Click here to get started.

Thank your donors:
While the Walk sends out acknowledgements to each donor for tax purposes, sending out a personal thank you is a great way to stay in touch with your sponsors. Let them know they helped you reach your fundraising goal and remind them that 100% of their donations go to research. Send them an email or an offline letter or postcard. Attach pictures of your team at the Walk. "My HQ" can help you track donations and stay in touch with your donors.