Hi Jamie,
For starters, congrats on starting up a parent group! It's a big undertaking, but so, so worth it! As far as fundraising is concerned, we have many articles and resources on the site to help guide you through this process. The key is in finding that balance for your group of building community and helping families con net with raising some funds to help the school. We have a few recently published articles that will help, including:

Which Fundraiser is Right for You? www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/arti...ser-is-right-for-you

You can check our fundraising section on the site, which includes articles that look at the pros and cons of the full range of fundraising options, from product fundraising and auctions to carnivals and fun runs.

You are bound to find a few ideas that will work for your school. Our fundraising section is here: www.ptotoday.com/fundraising

On Santa Shops, we don't recommend one particular company, but we can say we've heard of many parent groups that have had great success running holiday shops. Also, we have a listing of Santa Shop/Holiday Shop companies on our Yellow Pages. Here's the link: www.ptotoday.com/yellowpages/category/holiday-shops/

We have resources on our File Exchange that will help you promote your event and invite folks. You can download these for free here: www.ptotoday.com/filesharing/category/135-holiday-shops

Also, here's a great article on how to make your Santa Shop a success:

Holiday Shops: Make Yours Shine:http://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/421-holiday-shops-make-yours-shine


Good luck and again, congrats to you for stepping up and getting a parent group going. We'd be glad to help as you are putting things together. So, please, stay in touch!

Rose C.
Community Manager
.