This is what I sent to all of my online requests (Etsy, contact me forms etc...):
The Southwest Elementary PTO in Howell, MI is in the process of planning their annual Silent Auction and Basket Raffle, which will be held Friday, May 20, 2016 at our Family Fun Fest. This celebration is for our 506 students and their families.
One hundred percent of the proceeds from this year’s basket raffles and silent auction items will go to our Playground Fund. Our playground is in desperate need of an update. With your support we will be able to make the upgrades this summer.
This year we are highlighting Michigan based products, people and businesses and were hoping you would like to be involved.
We will be acknowledging our generous donors publicly in our newsletter that reaches over 400 families. We will also display any promotional materials that you provide.
I can mail/email more information if you are interested in being involved.
Thank you for your consideration,
K
Southwest PTO Co-President
Southwest PTO 501(c)(3)#
Hi Jen S!
The list at the beginning of the thread was created more than a year ago and is designed as a starting point. Community members post the names of companies they've had success with. If a community member doesn't include a link for a company, you can try a Google search of the company name and from its home page, you can search on terms such as "community" "charitable giving" "donations" "schools." From there, you should be able to find information on the company's donation policies.
Thank you to the person who suggested Etsy! I sent out about 20 emails to local Etsy owners that I thought would be a good fit for our event. Within a day, I received 7 responses from owners that want to donate! Some of items are customizable, so I suggested good color photos that represent their items that we can frame, along with a gift certificate! We will see how it goes! As a small business owner myself, I find that donating gift certificates are easy advertisement, yet don't always get redemmed. No loss for my business, and brings in money to charity of choice!
