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Fundraising Tools

We want your CAF fundraising experience to be fun, easy and rewarding. That is why we put together the following fundraising tips, tricks and best practices that will help get your fundraiser off the ground.

CAF Logo - for sharing

Connect your fundraising page to Facebook Fundraiser

Athlete Stories to share

CAF Fast Facts

What It All Costs

How to Raise $500 in 10 days

Tell Your Story

Tips from a Top Fundraiser

Team-building Tips

 

 

CAF Logo

To Benefit Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF)

How to save the image:

  1. Put the mouse arrow over the image
  2. Click and hold (Mac) or right mouse click (PC) on the image until a dialog box appears.
  3. Select "Save this image as" or "Save picture as"
  4. A box pops up asking you where you want to save the image to. Navigate to the folder in which you want to save the image.
  5. If you are using a Mac, also make sure that the name you choose ends in .jpg (if you are using a PC it will automatically insert this extension for you).
  6. Click on the "save" button.

Connect your page to a Facebook Fundraiser

Take your fundraising further by raising money through your social network. By connecting your fundraising page to a Facebook Fundraiser, you can share your page on Facebook to your friends and family. Donor's don't have to leave Facebook to donate to your page, all donations received will process and be displayed on both pages.

How it works:

  1. Connect your fundraising page to Facebook and create a Facebook Fundraiser
  2. Your photo and text will remain the same
  3. All donations will appear on both fundraising totals - no waiting for Facebook to process donations and send to CAF
  4. Fundraising numbers are kept in sync

Here's how to connect your personal page to a Facebook Fundraiser:

  1. Login to your Participant Center - Make sure your title, description and photo are updated before connecting. Please view instructions on how to update your page in the FAQs page.
  2. Click on the Edit Fundraiser Content button in the blue menu
    Facebook Fundraiser
  3. A popup will appear to let you edit your title and description one last time.
  4. Click Save and Connect Fundraiser to Facebook
  5. The Facebook login page opens to enter your login information. You need to login and allow the connection.
  6. Your fundraiser should be created and linked now
  7. You can share your Facebook Fundraiser link with your friends and family to ask for donations.

Your personal fundraising page and Facebook Fundraiser are linked - this means if someone donates on Facebook, you will see your total amount will automatically update. If someone donates on your personal page, the Facebook Fundraiser will automatically update your amount.

 

 

Athlete Stories to share

Below are shareable graphics for each athlete plus their link to their page on our Athletes page - including their age, hometown, sport(s), physical challenge, and story. You can use their stories in your fundraising page, messages to your supporters, and to showcase how CAF impacts our athletes.

Ella Rodriguez

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/ella-rodriguez/

Ella Rodriguez High School Adaptive Sports Program

Kenasyn Bird

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/kenasyn-bird/

Kenasyn Bird

Jack Cunningham

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/jack-cunningham/

Jack Cunningham

Gabby Platt

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/gabby-platt/

Gabby Platt

Willie Stewart

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/willie-stewart/

Willie-Stewart-Leadville-Mountain-Bike-cropped.jpg

Tyler Jones

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/tyler-jones/

Tyler Jones

Emma Meyers

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/emma-meyers/

Emma Meyers

Chase Merriweather

https://www.challengedathletes.org/athletes/chase-merriweather/

Chase Merriweather at run and mobility clinic

 

 

CAF Fast Facts

About CAF

CAF Beliefs

How CAF serves people with physical challenges

 

 

What It All Costs

$30,000 = a set of prosthetic running legs for a growing child

$15,000 = outdoor chair for cycling on trails

$5,000 = a custom track chair

$3,000 = a racing chair

$2,500 = a basketball wheelchair

$2,000 = a Hockey Sled + equipment

 

 

How to Raise $500 in 10 days

The key to success is simple - you just need to ask! Tell your friends, family, and colleagues why you want to help CAF work towards greater inclusion and empower challenged athletes to achieve more and inspire them to donate.

DAY 1
Set up your fundraising page in your Participant Center. Your registration fee counts as your first donation. If you didn't have a registration fee, make your own donation to really kick things off and demonstrate your commitment to the mission.

DAY 2
Get social! Make sure you connect your fundraiser to Facebook in your Participant Center. This will automatically share your page to your Facebook network. Once you get the word out, you’ll be surprised at who will support you- a high school friend, a college roommate, or a former co-worker.

DAY 3
Ask three family members to donate $25 or more.

DAY 4
Hit up 5 friends to donate $20 each. Your Participant Center is a great resource for sample fundraising messages that you can use if you need some help asking for support.

DAY 5
Ask a business that you regularly frequent to donate $25. Whether it’s your favorite restaurant, your hair stylist, your pharmacy - or all of the above - it never hurts to ask.

DAY 6
Ask five co-workers to donate $20 each.

DAY 7
Speaking of your employer, see if your company offers a matching gift program to really drive up your donations.

DAY 8
Choose five people from your gym, your child’s school, or local community group and ask for a donation of $10 each.

DAY 9
Ask someone whose cause you have supported for $25 or more. That’s the beauty of giving!

DAY 10
Send a fun update to everyone you’ve reached out to who has yet to donate. Showing them the progress you are making will act as a friendly reminder to show their support.

 

 

Tell Your Story

Did you know that sharing your personal story can be the most powerful way to really connect with potential donors?

Here are some tips for sharing your connection to CAF:

 

 

Tips from a Top Fundraiser

Below are tips on how to fundraise from a few SDTC veterans who have been fundraising for CAF for many years. Combined, they have participated in over 65 fundraisers and raised over $570,000. We asked them what advice they would give to a fundraiser and here's what they had to say:

Ralph Robinson
Fundraising since 2003

Probably my best piece of advice came to me from Dick Lansing. I asked him what his secret to great fundraising is, since he had been at the top year after year, and he told me what I think I was beginning to understand.  He said that in general people donate to YOU, not to the cause that you are supporting. They care about you, as a friend, family member, colleague at work, or however you know them.  It's not that they don't think CAF is a worthy cause - that is a necessary condition for them to donate.  So you DO have to let them know that CAF spends its funds in a well-directed way, and uses almost all of the money to help challenged athletes. But that may not be enough, because almost everybody has more worthy causes to donate to than they have money. So, what you really need to do is help them understand how being involved with CAF has helped YOU to be a better person in this world today. You need to help them see how helping CAF has helped YOU make the most of your life. Tell them the story of when and where you first got involved, and how that impacted you. That, more than anything, will help them truly understand the mission of CAF, and will move them to take action and make the donation. Since I had the good fortune to meet and talk to Jim MacLaren, I like to tell them how that one conversation moved me to come back year after year.

Stephen Doyne
Fundraiser in EVERY SDTC

Stephen shares with following his network:

For the past, 26 years it has been my privilege to participate in each and every San Diego Triathlon Challenge. A life changing experience, I have been humbled by the grit and determination of so many challenged athletes. Whether it is seeing Rudy and Jake grow up from the ages of 5 and 8 and flourish to be young confident men without a hint of disability, or see Sara grow into becoming the first woman amputee to complete the Ironman, CAF has changed lives - including mine as well. It is simply the best - a true tribute to the human spirit. And every dollar you give goes to help a worthy individual worldwide. Your donation will not only change their lives but yours as well.

Tina Weidenkeller
Fundraising since 1995

The root of it all is you are doing something good. You’re doing something to help the world be a better place so get the “ask people for money” out of your head. It’s the organization, sure, but it’s the person asking that drives why people are giving. They are giving to you because you’re involved in this charity. You are the connection for this person to help CAF.

Don’t have any preconceived notions on who will give or who will not because it never comes out the way you think. The one you think won’t give, gives a big gift and vice versa.

You may have to ask them multiple times. You’re not being a pain, it’s life. You’re busy, you’re pulled into so many directions and people will thank you for reminding them. Sometimes people think I work for CAF because I’m such a passionate fundraiser.

Break it down for people - I need 50 friends to give me $10 and I’ll be at my $500 goal. Don’t try and look for that person who’s going to write a $500 check.

Use the tools they’re giving you - Videos, stories, social media shares so people can SEE what CAF is really doing.

Before social media, I sent emails, I mailed letters! Now with social media it’s so easy to share with everyone. You never know who will jump on but you have to keep on it.

 

 

Team-building Tips

When people come together to support a cause they believe in, the results can be a real gamechanger. That’s why it’s so important to inspire others to make a real impact by helping CAF create a world where people with physical challenges are provided opportunity and access to sports and physical activity. No matter how big or small you envision your fundraising campaign, here are some tips to help you invite your friends, family and co-workers to join you.

How to recruit team members

Keep your team engaged