Posts Tagged fundraising

Two Generations Take Part In Fundraising Bike Ride

Last week marked the end of one mans epic journey from John O’Groats to Lands End. Jonathan Hyde and his Dad travelled 918 miles by bike in an effort to raise £1,000 for Lattitude Global Volunteering and help Jonathan to reach his goal of volunteering in South Africa.

Jonathan, who has just left Farnborough Sixth Form College, decided to take a gap year after hearing about Lattitude’s volunteering opportunities from his sister’s boyfriend. As a youth development charity, Lattitude specialises in providing unique experiences of voluntary work placements for young people from around the world.

Asked about his desire to volunteer abroad, Jonathan said: “I want to experience living in a different country and doing something different from my usual day to day life. Latitude was recommended to me, and the outdoor activity placement offered in South Africa sounded right up my street. I couldn’t think of a better way to volunteer!”

Jonathan’s inspiration for his fundraising bike ride came from his Dad: “When I was younger I used to go on bike rides with my Dad and he would tell me the stories of all the rides he has done. When he was telling me about when he rode John o’Groats to Lands End when he was my age I said to him that when I was 18 and finished at college that I wanted to do that ride with him and we never forgot!

Of course, there were challenges along the way, but these were quickly forgotten when the father and son team peddled in to Lands End on the afternoon of the 12th of September.

“I’m so pleased we’ve finished,” Jonathan continued, “It was a journey I’d been looking forward to taking for years. I’m glad I’ve managed to combine my wish to complete this bike ride with my Dad with fundraising for my placement in South Africa.

You can still sponsor Jonathan at: http://www.justgiving.com/jonathanhyde

Skydiving Teen Hopes Gap Year Will Fulfill Lifetime Wish To Travel

Advanced Highers student, Mhairi MacDonald, jumped out over the skies over Fife to raise money for Lattitude Global Volunteering.

This month Mhairi completed the daredevil stunt to raise as much money as she can for her gap year, volunteer teaching and working with street children in Ecuador.

Mhairi has just taken Advanced Highers in maths, chemistry, biology and physics at Queensferry High School and hopes that her gap year will help her make up her mind about what she wants to do with her future.

“I’m hoping my time in Ecuador will help me in my desire to explore the world, travel to a new country and learn about a different way of life. Lattitude has helped me find a placement that would both suit me and benefit the community I’ll be volunteering in. I am excited about and grateful for the opportunity to volunteer abroad, no matter what comes from it.”

Ecuador is unique among Lattitude’s programmes in that it offers each volunteer the chance to work at two placements each day, teaching in the mornings and a different placement such as working with street children or environmental projects in the afternoons. This gives the volunteers the chance to make a difference to two distinct communities during their time in Ecuador. All volunteers will live with a host family whose son or daughter is volunteering in the UK.

Mhairi continued: “I want to learn about another culture, another language, I want to do something practical and of use. I’ve always wanted to explore and get some experience of the real world before university.”

Lattitude’s Marketing Manager, Nick Adie, said: “With youth unemployment at its worst since the 1980s, young people must do something to set themselves apart from other applicants. Whether before or after university, volunteering abroad or in the UK can give young people a skill set or experience which allows them to stand out from the crowd.”

Lattitude Global Volunteering is a youth development charity and is celebrating its 40^th Anniversary year during 2012. It’s biggest accolade to date, sending its 40,000^th volunteer to Ecuador in September of this year.

To support Mhairi with her sky dive and future fundraising activities, please go to http://www.justgiving.com/mhairigoestoecuador

Volunteer fundraising Lana did a bungy jump

Lana did a bungee jump to help raise money for her placement in malwai, here are some of her fantastic photos.

Lattitude Global Volunteering fundraising, bungee jump

Volunteer Lana bungee jumps as a fundraiser for her Malawi placement

Meet our marathon runners: Steve is running the London Marathon for Lattitude Global Volunteering

Steve is running the London Marathon for Lattitude Global Volunteering

1. Have you run any marathons before?

No I haven’t. I have run 2 half marathons, the Silverstone Half Marathon 3 years ago and then the Reading Half Marathon last year. I have also run the Great South Run for the last 3 years (10 miles). I have always said that you have to be a freak of nature to complete a full Marathon and that I could never do it.

2. What made you want to run?

I watched it on the TV last year, got caught up in the moment and said to my wife it would be fantastic to do it this year as it will be just after my 40th Birthday and with the Olympics being held in London this year, the atmosphere would be amazing. At the time I decided not to enter as we are away in Florida for the 2 weeks leading up to it, so felt it might be too difficult to get the training done.

3. Why did you choose to run for Lattitude?

I’m the manager of Barclays Bank in Reading and for several years we have worked closely with Lattitude to provide the volunteers with banking facilities when they arrive in the UK. I received a letter from Lattitide last year looking for volunteers to run the Brighton Marathon but this clashed with the Reading Half Marathon so we couldn’t help. This year the letter arrived offering the opportunity to run the London Marathon, and I just had to do it!

4. How is the training going?

Training is starting to step up now. Since entering I have been doing little bits each week to try and build my fitness, mainly in the gym and a few small road runs, but over Christmas and into the New Year, I’m working closely to a plan to make sure I’m fit and strong enough to finish. Yesterday I ran 14.5 miles which is the furthest I have ever managed.

5. Have you got a target time? (Or would you rather see how it goes?)

I’m pretty slow, the last half marathon was 2 hours 10 minutes, so I think it will take me somewhere close to 5 hours. As long as I finish, and manage to run the full distance I will be happy. Any time under 5 hours will be a bonus.

6. How is the sponsorship going?

Barclays has agreed to match fund raising up to £750.00 One of my colleagues, Justin, is also running so between us Barclays will match £1500.00 we would love to raise somewhere between £2,000 and £3,000 including the matched fundraising from the bank, but we will have to see.

7. Have you done anything interesting to raise awareness or done any other sort of fundraising?

Now that Christmas is out the way, we are looking to step up interest; we have a few ideas depending on how hard it is to raise the money.

Abbie’s top tips for stress free fundraising

Finding the funds for a gap year is always listed as a reason that puts prospective volunteers off, but that needn’t be the case. If you choose a structured gap year, with an organisation or charity, they can help you every step of the way.

Abbie Smith is taking a gap year placement to Japan with Lattitude Global Volunteering in March 2012. Below she discusses how her fundraising activities have helped her raise the funds needed for her gap year.

For me starting my fundraising early was really important. Many people think that you have to organise huge events to be a successful fundraiser, but this isn’t the case. I found that doing lots of smaller events meant that I had access to a much bigger pool of people and it also gave me the opportunity to ask for continued donations without feeling cheeky.

Although I have done numerous fundraising activities, without a doubt, my most successful fundraising activity has to be car boot sales. It was easy to find things that I didn’t need anymore to sell and having a stall gave me the opportunity to explain to people what I was raising money for. This often resulted in more generous prices for my goods.

I have had cake sales of my own home-baked cakes. By adding a small amount on-top of the value of the ingredients, I managed to get a good price for my cakes and my buyers went away happy.

Raffles are another good way to raise money. I asked around family, friends and local businesses for donations for prizes. I found everyone to be so supportive. Most people have unused/unwanted gifts that make perfect prizes and do more good raising money than in a box under the bed. Other prizes could be a night’s baby-sitting or washing someone’s car.

My Mum helped me arrange a 70’s themed party in our garden at home and family and friends paid a small fee to come and enjoy the night. This event was so much fun and went way better than I expected.

I’ve now reached my fund-raising goal, including a small bursary from Lattitude Global Volunteering. Now I just can’t wait to go away. I am hoping to gain a whole new outlook on life and experience a once in a life time opportunity. Visiting a different country with a whole new culture is going to be difficult and challenging yet hopefully very rewarding.

Abbie’s top tips for stress free fundraising:

• Start early – It’s never too soon to start planning. The sooner you start, the sooner you’ll finish.

• Look in your local papers and directories for a list of where your local car boot sales are. It’s normally around £5 per car, so factor this in when pricing your goods.

• Get family and friends involved – The stress of planning events can be halved if it’s on more than your shoulders.

Top 10 ways to fundraise for your Voluntary placement

By Roberta Geraci

fundraising for a gap year, part of the process!

1. Organise a charity sporting event

Try organising a charity sporting event to raise money, have fun and keep fit. You could try organising a team game or set a personal challenge, like Michael Njunge, who cycled on a 400 mile journey from his home in Langley, Berkshire, to LegoLand, Windsor, taking in three other Merlin theme parks around the country including Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures and Alton Towers. Michael set a target of £800 to raise, which will help him reach his goal and allow him to take up his medical placement in Japan with Lattitude Global Volunteering in March 2012.

Why not try organising a charity football, rugby or hockey match for example. You could try and make it interesting by taking on your friend’s parents, or see if your school will be happy for you to arrange a teachers Vs students match. Try and get people to donate to watch and participate.

Michael with his bike

2. Donate for your guilty pleasures

Make a box to save up money every time you do something you shouldn’t. For example if chocolate is your sin, donate a pound every time you eat some. Try and get all your family and friends involved and challenge each other. You could even donate money every time u wasted 10 minutes on Facebook instead of doing something more productive!

3. Get partying

Try arranging a party and getting people to donate to attend, for food and for drinks. Some ideas might include; a seasonal party (like Christmas, Valentine’s day party, Easter party, a New Years Eve party, a themed party (like a murder mystery night, film night), or a disco or karaoke night.

What about organizing a Come Dine with me style competition between you and your friends, or try organizing a party based on your preferred destination like Ailsa. Ailsa has held a Fiji themed party, a cake sale, a ceilidh with raffle and is even planning a James Bond evening, among other ideas. Ailsa has already raised over £1,000, and she has more events in the works!

4. Be fancy

Fancy dress can be fun all year round! Whether it is seasonal (Halloween, Christmas, Easter etc..) or just to have a laugh, get you and your friends in funny outfits and have a contest with a small prize, get around the city and get people to donate to snap a picture with you (like dressing you all like famous movies character— Star Wars, pirates, etc). Sam, who is volunteering in Japan this September with Lattitude Global Volunteering, managed to raise over £100 by dressing up as a Dalmatian!

The dalmation!

5. Challenge yourself

Run a marathon, cycle or walk miles, participate in a mountain climb or brave yourself to take on an obstacle course run (where people pay a small fee to add obstacles on your way).

David Logue, ran from his hometown of Leicester to Twickenham Rugby Stadium, to raise money towards his gap year teaching placement in Argentina. In February David and his friend, Jacob, ran over 100 miles, participating in the equivalent of four marathons! David explained “We chose to run during the February half term, as it was between our January and summer exams”. “When we saw that the England Vs France Six Nations Rugby match was taking place at Twickenham that week, we decided to run to the stadium.”

With Lattitude’s help, David secured coverage in The Leicestershire Mercury, This is Leicestershire, South Leicestershire College News and MKWeb, boosting awareness about the run and fundraising. In total David raised nearly £1,500 towards his placement and managed quite an incredible achievement.

Other inspirational examples are James, who went on a sponsored bike ride dressed as Spiderman and Sam who despite suffering with a knee injury, signed up for a half marathon, which he intends to do on crutches to raise the funds for his placement!!

Let us know if you’re planning something and we can help you raise awareness and more donations

6. Challenge others

Try organizing a quiz night or a “guess the number of” competition (for example using jelly beans, Easter eggs, keys, anything really!). Charge a small fee to participate and give a prize to the best guesses.

A good example is Mike, who with the help of his mother, Rosie, and the Hamble Valley Rotary Club, organised a quiz night to help raise money for new text books at the remote Secondary School, where Mike was volunteering, in North Tanzania.

7. Sell, Sell, Sell!!!

Why not hold a jumble sale or a Car boot sale to get rid of your old and unwanted clothes, video games, CDs, films etc. You could try setting up an eBay account or post for sale items on message boards. You could even take things a step further like Liam Taylor, by starting you own small business. Liam , who works full-time, thought of a great way to raise money for his placement in Japan. Each week Liam made Japanese sushi lunchboxes for his colleagues who all pay him to save them the time of making a healthy homemade lunch. Liam found they were becoming really popular and even introduced “Cheesecake Friday’s” to sell his homemade cheesecake for a £1 slice! Not only you will get instant revenues but it looks great on your CV too!

You can ask your friends and family to donate unwanted items too to increase your sales.

8. Odd Jobs -

Everybody hates chores, so why not offer to do it for them. You could offer to do gardening, DIY, walk your neighbour’s dogs, or babysit.

Why not ask your neighbours and offer your services in return for a donation, you could even do it in fancy dress to get noticed! It’s a great way to get to know your neighbours, raise money and improve your skills at the same time.

9. I dare you!

Here’s one for those of you with no shame! Owen Copping came up with the idea of a dare page where people would challenge him to do something in exchange for a donation. Suggestions raised so far include eating nothing but baked beans for 3 days, and offers to be a “slave” for 5 days. Owen set up a Facebook page and took offers from his friends. You could even do an auction to raise more money and have a bit more control. Like take bids on who would want to take you for a date! While we encourage you to have fun, please remember to be safe, stay legal and do not do anything you will regret for too long!

10. Show Off

Why not organise a show? It could be anything from a talent show, a fashion show, a magic show, to your own play or dance routine.

Elaine a former Lattitude volunteer organised her own Fashion show fundraiser to raise money for her placement in Ecuador. You can charge people to come watch, get people to donate to be a model for the day, you could even design your own clothes, or better yet, get people to donate to have their designs showcased. Why not talk to the Fashion students at your college and see if you can work together to hold a fundraiser. You could combine the event with other fundraising ideas such as raffles or after show parties.

Elaine held a fashion show as part of her fundraising for her overseas volunteering placement

Whatever you decide, please remember to do it safely and keep in touch so we can help raise awareness!

Michael Njunge Rides 400 Miles to Reach Fundraising Goal

October 2011: Ex Slough Grammar School student, Michael Njunge, today embarks on a challenge of a lifetime to raise money for Lattitude Global Volunteering.

Today Michael will leave on his bike from his home in Langley, Berkshire, and cycle to LegoLand, Windsor, where he worked the past three summers in food and drink and most recently as an attractions front-liner. He will embark on his 400-mile journey taking in three other Merlin theme parks around the country including Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures and Alton Towers, Staffordshire, before his ride comes to an end back home in Langley on the 30th.

Michael has a target of £800 to raise, which will help him reach his goal and allow him to take up his medical placement in Japan with Lattitude Global Volunteering in March 2012.

Talking of inspiration about his ride, Michael said: “I wanted to ride a long distance as something new and challenging. I’d done marathons before, but never a tour like this so I thought it was a good opportunity to try something new outside of my comfort zone and it was a good opportunity to fundraise.”

“The parks are the main Merlin attractions of the UK and so I thought people would know about them and as an ex-Merlin employee I thought it would be a good wrap-up to my ending employment with them.”

Lattitude Global Volunteering’s Marketing Manager, Nick Adie said: “We are always so excited when our volunteers choose to do something like this to aid their fundraising. We wish Michael the best of luck in his journey and we hope he reaches the target he’s set.”