Jump from a plane, donate a car, climb Kilamanjiro or sit in a bath of beans; any of these would be deemed fundraisers if money is realized from your efforts and subsequently donated to charities like the American Red Cross. With a physician’s okay, the heart of a lion and the insanity of a sociopath, crazy high-risk adventures are an ideal way to raise funds…if your idea has enough appeal to make people pull out their purse to find you some cash.

Lesser mortals may prefer to follow tradition and observe more conventional methods of fundraising like direct appeals with collection boxes in their workplace or calling up to donate your car, safe in the knowledge that there is neither risk to life or limb by taking this route rather than the adrenalin junkies’ hazardous and tortuous pathways to fundraising. Vehicle donation is hazard and hassle free.

It is quite amazing how much the ARC manages to do considering it is solely dependent on the generosity and benevolence of the public and not only do they secure funds to be able to respond to disasters in the local community if you were to make a vehicle donation say, you could ask that funds raised are directed to the cause of your choice and this will be respected. There may be some area of concern that has special meaning for you and that is why you have your preference for the car donation direction. Be reassured, if there is anywhere requiring help it will need funds to support it and the ARC are glad to place them where you wish; it all helps.

I must admit I do love it when somebody does something out of whack for charity, laughter is good medicine and I’ll pay to laugh at someone else’s expense; being willing to make a fool of yourself in public shows great humility and I prefer that to the righteous pontificating of the sweat, blood and glory groups who take so long to achieve what they did. Why not have a quick laugh and raise instant cash?

Music is a universal language; it crosses all borders and age groups and I suppose in its purist form upholds the values of the American Red Cross. The recent Rock ‘N Runway fundraiser in California and the grand prize for the national Change a Life Contest in March – a two-night trip for two to Washington D.C. to join Keith Urban and his band on August 20th as they play their Escape Together World Tour concert – marry charity and music together.

Music fundraisers don’t have to be big concerts ‘in aid of’, some artists are very willing to offer backstage passes or free tickets to their gigs as a prize for a charity. The ARC has massive appeal and I don’t think anyone would turn them down if they approached them – what’s not to like?

Music is not the only way you can help. You could donate a car, clothes, furniture, garden equipment, sorting through an estate inheritance there may be all manner of things that would make a good sum of money to help raise funds. There might be a property that could be a bequest; real estate can be used in many different ways, it could be sold or used as alternative accommodation or maybe as offices for training or administration or even for the warehousing of supplies and equipment that has to be stored somewhere. An old vehicle donation would save you the trouble of finding a buyer yourself or just organizing getting it off your hands. Bric-a-brac you have no use for could be a donation that might just get those extra cents into the coffers. Vinyl records or vintage (okay…old) vehicles could make money so don’t disregard them, donate them, a car donation gets sold off in auction and who knows who might purchase the records; some older LPs are used by deejays to take samples from in their own recordings.

Car donation, cash donation, goods and services donation, concert tickets donation are all music to our ears, so donate your car, text ‘GIVE’ to ‘2HELP’or donate your time to fundraising activities.

Fundraising has lately been elevated to a new status within the charity community. Professional fundraisers are headhunted and special events can be either swathed in secrecy until the big launch so that no-one else can steal the idea or the high profile personnel involved in the activities or the information is constantly fed to us to make sure we are aware of the big event when it comes and feel left out if we are not part of it. These are the notions of professional strategists and current thought hails them as moneymaking marvels.

However, organizations like the American Red Cross appreciate any and every event arranged by supporters who endeavor to raise vital funds. Small, simple and old-fashioned yard sales, home made lemonade stands, sponsored silences, spelling bees or fireside quizzes, swimathons, marathons, triathlons whatever-athons – as long as they are supported by the public and the money raised is donated to the charity, the ARC appreciates it.

One of the regular fundraisers is the car auction when you donate your car and its sale brings in much needed cash to the ARC. Something like a car donation is simple and effective. When you donate your used car, even if it seems a closer cousin of the scrapheap than the showroom, your vehicle donation could be useful for spares. There’s nothing terribly glamorous about auto donation – you call, they collect and the vehicle is sold. Again, something simple that anyone could do or recommend for others to do.

Another fundraiser is the ‘appeal’. This may be broadcasted so that the caring and generous public can ring, text or ping their cash to the crisis of the moment. It’s the modern day equivalent of can shaking though the ‘kerching’ has been lost and the collections are silent now. Don’t be put off by glitzy campaigns or guilt-filled emotional blackmail attempts to get your money – different people respond to different stimuli whether it be fear of failure or a desire for success and for many, the ends justify the means. Any small effort is welcomed and all the little things add up to a lot.