Daycare Fundraiser

Child care centers often have fund raisers for specific items they can't really afford otherwise. We usually volunteer and help in the planning.

Even schools have fund raisers. You will be expected to particiapate in them from here on out.

What type of daycare is this? My kids go to daycare and we have never been asked to do this.

I do a fundraiser every week for my childrens' daycare...in the form of a tuition check paid weekly!

Brace yourself. You are just beginning.
You have no IDEA how many times you will be asked to sell/buy over the years as your child grows.
Multiple times over the years, there's Girl Scout cookies, Boy Scout popcorn, band usually sells fruit, schools in general sell magazine subscriptions, frozen cookie dough, frozen pizzas, candy, candles, flower bulbs, wrapping paper, greeting cards, mugs - the list goes on and on.
You do not have to buy, sell or donate anything.
You pay for your child to be there and that's plenty.
Fund raisers just drive me nuts and I refuse to deal with them.
If the PTA has an opt out option and I can write them a check, I'll do that.
On top of everything else, most of the time the cause in question only gets 15 - 20 cents per dollar spent on what ever they are pushing.
I refuse to pimp my kid.

I agree that you should either buy a few things or donate money. If you donate I would donate a fair amount, like it maybe 5-10 people's worth of product from the catalog. Schools and other organizations do fundraisers to cut down on the amount of money that they require from parents, so please try and help out, if not then your fees are likely to go up even more! Maybe you can use some of the products for gifts for others throughout the year!?

i teach (at a private school) and send my kids to one. TUITION DOES NOT COVER IT ALL (in most cases).

with that said...since it seems you don't want to purchase some item you'll probably never use, then ask if you can donate time or money...and if so, how and how much.

at the private school i send my 1 year old and 4 year old there is an annual parent fund where we have a monetary and/or volunteer time quota to meet. you're getting off way easy.

You should do something. Schools depend on their fundraisers to bring in the money to do the "extras" for the kids. It is kind of unfair for you to do nothing yet your child enjoys the fruits of the fundraiser. You don't have to peddle it to anyone but yourself and only get the minimum=a candle or something.

I cannot imagine a daycare doing a fundraiser!

When I worked at a facility, we relied on "yard sale" donations, holding the yard sale once a year. The parents liked it because it eliminated junk from their homes....& all they had to do was drop it off!

You don't have to buy the overpriced catalog stuff. Ask the daycare director what the purpose of the fundraiser is. If the school has a special goal, like new books, donate a book or two. If they are raising money for new toys, donate a new toy or write a check to be designated for the specific things they need. If the fundraising money goes into the "general fund" I would definitely opt out. Your tuition should cover that. Be direct, ask if extra fundraising is optional or required. If families are expected to raise a certain amount of profit dollars, ask what that exact amount is. Consider that part of your tuition and send it along with your tuition check.

I hate selling stuff and always just try to give a nice donation. You should not feel that you have to give a specific dollar amount, but an amount of what you can afford. Right now money is tight for every one and the daycare probably understands this as well.

Look at the handbook if you have one -- one of our daycares REQUIRED participation in either the fundraisers or a donation annually and another 2 times a year. The other daycare/montessori school -- it was optional. Now my daughter is in a Catholic preschool associated with an elementary and they send stuff home EVERY WEEK - I swear! We can't buy any of the food stuff because of her food allergies, so it pretty much just a paper waste. We are required to "give" a certain amount to the church or donate that value annually no matter what we buy -- so we do that instead. Good luck!

daycare fundraiser??? are you kidding me? wow...im so surprised by this. whats the money going towards, like fees arent cutting it? soo curious.

I usually buy something small and get my mother and MIL to do the same, but I don't feel comfortable asking others to purchase. I wouldn't suggest abstaining altogether, but no need to knock on doors!

Our daycare provider does a plant sale in the spring, which is actually pretty nice. They are a little pricey, but then again the point is to raise money! We usually buy the plants for the grandmothers as an Easter gift so it serves two functions. The one that gets me is the Yankee Candle sale in the fall. Oh well- just have a $10 limit for yourself and pick out something that you may be able to give as a gifl!

Oh yuck, at daycare? Wowsa. To answer your question, you don't need to do anything. If you WANT to do something, ask them how much money from each thing that is sold goes to them. Then, multiply that amount by 2 or 3 (the number of items you might have sold) and make a cash donation.

Another option is to ask them what they plan to use the money for and see if you can't help them locate these items cheaper.

There are two fundraisers that I have LOVED in our neck of the woods. 1. Offer an all day scrap to the moms of the daycare and their friends. I'm sure there is space to do this at a daycare. Everyone pays $20 - $30 for the day and is treated with lunch, snacks, and dinner. It's a great way to make some money and also offer fellowship and a day out for the moms. Maybe they could offer childcare to some of the moms at fundrasier price while they are there. 2. Have the daycare host a baby & kids' sale. They rent out booth/table space for $20 for one large table, $30 for two and everyone sells their baby and kids' clothes, toys, etc. It would also be a great advertisement for the daycare to let other moms in the area to see inside their facility without any pressure.

A lot of dance schools, regular schools, and churches do these types of fundraisers here. They are very successful (and fun to attend!).

Just some ideas to throw their way. :)

I get so tired of school fundraisers. We had a lot this year! One of them was selling packaged food for easy dinners...Gourmet something. Everything they had contained msg which I cannot eat. I just wrote a check for $20 from our family as a donation and did not bother trying to sell something I would not even feed my dogs! So...that is an option for you...just donate a minimal amount of money instead.