Hope Shines On - Limited Edition Luminaria Bags For The Holidays!

I am super excited about this!  But first...

As this blog has become more and more successful, I have been thinking a lot about ways that we can take our mission to cure cancer a step further by using it as a tool to raise more money for American Cancer Society.  I didn't want to fill the blog with ads, and I know you are all already working hard to meet your own goals, so I didn't want to ask for straight up Relay donations.  My solution?  Ask you all to do something you already do.  Shop on AMAZON.  If you are anything like me, Amazon is your go to source for online shipping.  Here's how it works.  When you want to shop on Amazon, click this link:

Shop Amazon and support our fundraising efforts!

And Amazon will send me a percentage of your purchase via the Amazon Associates program, which I will turn around and donate!  The percentage is anywhere between 4 and 10 percent, which is much higher than the Amazon Smile program.  I am so excited about this opportunity, and really hope you all will make your purchases through these affiliate links, so that we can fund more cures faster!

Now, back to the show :)

I noticed in surveys last year, we were asked if we would be interested in something like this, and it is obvious that ACS listened!  From now through November 7th, 2015 you can purchase (or fund raise by selling!) this palm-sized metal keepsake, embellished with a Relay For Life logo and antique silver finish and strung with a decorative purple ribbon, with a $35 contribution to Relay For Life.

IT'S A FLIPPING RELAY FOR LIFE LUMINARIA ORNAMENT!  I seriously need a TREE full.  A PURPLE tree full. 

And obviously, I would love for you to buy yours from Cancer Man - but I also want to share this with you so you can use it for your own personal fundraising.  I mean, we are all in this together, right?

Here is Cancer Man's Facebook post on these:

I think this is really cool...
Christmas is coming up and we have the perfect gift for you to give someone who has EVERYTHING. Make a 35$ donation to my Relay fundraising here....(click limited edition keepsake) http://tinyurl.com/RelayKeepsake and you will get this really awesome luminaria bag ornament. You can personalize the card so you can give it to a friend in memory or honor of someone. i think it would be a really special way to remember someone at Christmas the gift is beautiful but the gift also helps us find a cure and helps me reach my Relay goal.

And.... let's face it. Im going to talk you out of at least 35$ this year anyway, so you might as well get something super aWESome with your money to!

And here is my post (and guys, you can totally use my words I don't mind at all!)

Christmas is a magical time of year, and today I want to share a special way  you can honor or remember someone with cancer this year, and for years to come.

This is the first time we have done something like this, and I think it is absolutely fantastic.  As someone who looks at Christmas as a time of giving, instead of receiving, I can not think of a better gift.  In fact, if I had nothing but a tree full of these for Christmas, I would probably be the happiest person alive.

What is this little rectangle thing?  It's a luminaria bag.  If you are not familiar with Relay For Life, we hold a very special ceremony at each event, where we light these bags in honor, in support,  or memory, of someone who has had cancer.  Anyone who has attended one of these ceremonies can tell you it is nothing short of life changing.  It is a moment of happiness, grief, and bonding like nothing else I have ever experienced.  To a Relayer, each bag represents a loved one- A LIFE, that should not be forgotten.  A battle that was won.  A child, a spouse, a parent, a friend, or a loved one. 

This holiday season, I ask that you consider giving just one of these as a gift.  They are limited edition, and come with a beautiful box and gift note.  You can ship it directly to the recipient, or to yourself.  Not only will you be giving a gift that keeps on giving, you will also be supporting Cancer Man​ in his mission to create more family Christmas memories for others.

To purchase, simply make a $35 tax deductible donation here: (click limited edition keepsake) http://tinyurl.com/RelayKeepsake

Please help us by sharing with everyone you know!
ANDDDDDD- here are some great photos that I downloaded from Brand Toolkit that you can use with your Facebook posts.  Just right click and save to your computer!

Now, I have this strange ability to write posts on FB and Twitter all day long (Cancer Man does to- must be genetic!) but not everyone knows just what to say.  Guess what?  There's an info sheet for that!  I am copy and pasting for you so you can do the same :)

Relay For Life Keepake – Toolkit Social Assets

Message 1 – Announcement

Recommended timing: September 16 - 25

Facebook

You can shine a light all year long with a limited edition Relay For Life keepsake. Order now through November 7 at relayforlife.org/[EVENT URL].

Twitter

Shine a light all year long with a limited edition @relayforlife keepsake. Order now at relayforlife.org/[EVENT URL].

Instagram

You can shine a light all year long with a limited edition #relayforlife keepsake. Order now at relayforlife.org/keepsake.

Message 2 – Reminder

Recommended timing: October 5 - 16

Facebook

The Relay For Life limited edition keepsake makes a great gift for the holidays! Order now through November 7 at relayforlife.org/[EVENT URL].

Twitter

The @relayforlife limited edition keepsake makes a great gift for the holidays! Order now at relayforlife.org/[EVENT URL].

Instagram

The #relayforlife limited edition keepsake makes a great gift for the holidays! Order now at relayforlife.org/keepsake. #holidayshopping

Message 3 – Last Chance

Recommended timing: October 23 - November 2

Facebook

Now’s the last chance to order a Relay For Life limited edition keepsake for the holidays! It’s a great gift for everyone on your list or as a way for you to always keep the Relay For Life movement close to your heart this season. Order by November 7 at relayforlife.org/[EVENT URL].

Twitter

Last chance to order a @relayforlife limited edition keepsake for the holidays! Order by 11/7 at relayforlife.org/[EVENT URL].

Instagram

Now’s the last chance to order a #relayforlife limited edition keepsake for the holidays. Order by 11/7 at relayforlife.org/keepsake. #holidayshopping

This is an amazing fundraiser for the holidays, and you have all of the tools you need to pull it off right here!  What are you waiting for?  Let's make this a purple Christmas!

As always, with HOPE-

<3 Cassi

BIG Changes are coming to Facebook in January 2015 - and it effects Relayers - MUST READ INFO!

I know that everyone is winding down for the holidays, but I came across something this week that I need to share with you in order to help you make 2015 a successful fundraising year for you!  As we gear up for 2015, a lot of you will be getting ready to ask for some serious donations.  I'm here to share some major changes Facebook is making to how news feeds work, and to tell you how to adjust to make sure you are still getting much needed donation to find a cure for cancer.

To put it in a nutshell (and without boring or confusing you with Facebook algorithms and how they work), I have seen dramatic decreases in the amount of engagement in Relay related Facebook posts over the last several months- including ones made by Relay For Life pages for events (so, not just my personal page or the Cancer Man Page).  This has resulted in a massive decrease in donors via Facebook (and will continue to).  You see before now, I would tell you to go home, personalize your Relay page, and post links on Facebook to get your donations going.  Unfortunately folks, it looks like Facebook isn't going to be your gold mine for donations the way it once was.

Starting January 1st, Facebook will be making a change to what goes into individual news feeds.  They have already been rolling this out and testing it, which explains my massive decrease in results.  The goal is to 1) Make sure FB users are seeing the content they want to see (and not feel like it is all page advertisements, or in our case, asking for donations), and 2) to make sure that businesses that want to be seen are PAYING to be seen.  The reason that is such a big problem is, of course, we are non profit, and are not going to spend millions of dollars on advertising when we could be curing cancer (and also, in my personal opinion they are a big fat waste of money- see here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVfHeWTKjag).

In other words, because of Facebook algorithms going into place, something like a picture of my Christmas card will easily get to the top of news feeds, and get a lot of likes and comments (and, I do have an awesome card, but wait until you see the difference between the two posts).

However, a post I make about needing a donation for Relay For Life may only be seen by a few people, and chances are the people who do see it are going to be fellow volunteers, not potential new donors.

Shout out to my boy Russell Keeler for the like!

The worst part is, these posts are from now- in January it will get worse. 

If you would like to read the full release by Facebook you can read it here:
https://www.facebook.com/business/news/update-to-facebook-news-feed



It is CRITICAL to our success that I get this information out to my fellow volunteers!  If we go into meetings and say, "YEAH!  Just post it on Facebook, everyone will donate!" volunteers are going to experience failure and be very frustrated right off the bat.  If it frustrated me, I know it's going to frustrate you.

Here's what you CAN do to increase your chances for success with personal donations in 2015.

-SEND SNAIL MAIL asking for donations this year.

Why snail mail?  The image above says it all!  How excited were you to get Christmas cards in the mail this year?  Mailed donation requests should go out to everyone you have an address for- and then call your parents and ask to borrow their address book to.  Hey, no shame- not going to apologize for curing cancer.  If you send snail mail, it is at least going to get opened.  With an email it may be automatically deleted, and on Facebook/Twitter/IG- scrolled through.

AND, if you are going to take the time to mail out the letters, then take the time to make your letter personal.  The pre-made ones are great, but they don't tell YOUR story.  If you want some letter ideas, I've got a blog post for that!

-Face to face interactions.  I know, I know- who does that anymore?  But guess what?  Its time to bring it back baby!  Have coffee with a friend and make an ask, ask your co-workers, ask your boss- TO THEIR FACE. 

-Instead of posting your Relay link on Facebook, and just saying, please help me cure cancer!  Post a video of you asking people to donate and telling your story.  Why do you Relay?  What services do we offer?  Talk from the heart! 

-Use Facebook to redirect an ask.  For example, someone like me who has a blog would make the ask in a blog post.  Then post a link to the blog on Facebook with a catchy title like-Why I will not apologize for curing cancer (with a picture!!!)

-When you do make an ask on Facebook, you need to make it CREATIVE. Don't use a meme (a picture with text overlay like my warm fuzzy above will be buried with the new algorithm.) Remember the purple mustache challenge?  That worked!  It was creative and different, and got a lot of views and donations!

-If you see another Relayer posting about a fundraiser, asking for donations, etc, like and comment on it.  This will tell the FB algorithm that the content is interesting, and release it to more news feeds.  You guys all wonder why I am always commenting on your stuff, right?  Well now you know that I am not ACTUALLY a stalker, I just want you to be successful!

Now, I know you are thinking- holy crapola- what will work and what won't? Kevan Lee does a great job of explaining what the algorithm likes, and what it doesn't.  Now, keep in mind, this may be much stricter come January, but it is a great starting point for those of you more interested in wrapping your head around this entire concept. See it here :)

I don't want you guys thinking that posting on Facebook for donations isn't worth it anymore- IT CAN BE, if you do it the right way.  After all, even a small amount of donations is better than NO donations at all.

That being said, I DO want you guys to go into 2015 prepared.  Be ready to do things a little differently than you have in the past, and be open to new ideas!  We were amazing fundraisers BEFORE Facebook, and we can still be amazing fundraisers now. 

So, let's open up this blog post for conversation.  What has been working for you?  Do you have any creative ideas?  Share below so we can all benefit! 

With Hope,
Cassi

Not every fundraiser is a smashing success, and that's ok!

So Cancer Man and I came up with the best fundraising idea ever for Christmas time (not the Poo-pourri, I am talking about the OTHER genius idea)

What do you get someone for Christmas that has EVERYTHING?

A Warm Fuzzy!

This idea came from a story Wes' friend Sheri Ingham told him in kindergarten.  It goes like this:

The Warm Fuzzy Story (adapted from Claude Steiner’s original tale)

Many years ago, on a little island, lived a bunch of happy people. They loved their

friendly little island with its beautiful trees, water, and sand. The islanders had a special

tradition of trading warm fuzzies with each other. Warm fuzzies were like little balls of pure

love that made everyone feel good all over.

People would offer warm fuzzies freely, and if you needed one all you had to do was

ask. Even people you didn’t know would reach into their pockets and pull out a warm fuzzy,

and just give it to you! Every warm fuzzy was like a big hug from a friend. And there were

always plenty of warm fuzzies to go around.

Everyone felt safe and loved and they all helped each other to feel safe and loved.

But one day a grouchy, grumbly, mumbly tourist came to visit the island. He didn’t

understand what everyone was doing but he was sure he didn’t like it. He kept cold prickles

in his pockets and warm fuzzies didn’t make any sense to him. So he decided that he would

tell a lie to the islanders, to convince them to stop with all that warm fuzzy business.

The grouchy tourist told the islanders that their warm fuzzies were the most precious

things in the world. He told them that instead of sharing them, they should be keeping them.

What if the world supply of warm fuzzies ran out? What would they do then?

All of a sudden the islanders began worrying and acting selfishly, keeping their warm

fuzzies to themselves. And a funny thing happened. When people stopped sharing their

warm fuzzies, people stopped receiving warm fuzzies. Instead of everyone feeling warm and

fuzzy inside, they started to feel cold and prickly inside. This made everyone kind of sad,

everyone except for that grouchy tourist that is.

Thank goodness something nice happened next. You see, one of the islanders had left

for college. She came home to visit and brought her warm fuzzies with her. When she

arrived home, she started giving warm fuzzies to everyone she saw. The islanders started to

realize what they were missing and that they had made a mistake. Holding onto their warm

fuzzies didn’t make them happier, it made them miserable. They figured out that giving their

warm fuzzies away not only made their friends happy, it made them happy too.

The good news is that we can be just like those islanders! We can give warm fuzzies,

like these cute little pom poms. But we can also give warm fuzzies that are sparkly, little,

fluffy, imaginary balls of happy. You see, when we offer a kind word or help someone to feel

better, that’s the best kind of warm fuzzy there is.

So, last year Cancer Man kept bringing up this idea, but we just couldn't find poof-balls big enough.  This year, we revisited the idea, but with a more creative outlook- how can we MAKE them big enough?  We ended up buying roll after roll of yarn, googly eyes, and testing out different methods until we found one that worked!  The final product was about 6" in diameter!

Then we posted on Facebook: 

THIS FRIDAY, SATURDAY, AND SUNDAY ONLY! Make a donation of $25 or more to Cancer Man at http://www.main.acsevents.org/goto/CancerMan and Cancer Man will ship a gift wrapped Warm Fuzzy to a gift recipient (or you!), with a note saying you donated to Relay For Life on their behalf for Christmas. Cancer Man makes all of these himself! Give someone a gift with some major love in it that will help us support cancer patients, and help us find a cure for cancer!

Simply leave the name and address of the person you want it sent to in the "private note for the person you are supporting" section on the donate page, and we will do the rest! Thank you all for your support!

We thought SURELY we would have so many donors that we would be making warm fuzzies up until the last day we could ship them for Christmas delivery (and I know $25 is high, but I needed them to be substantial enough donations for me to cover the shipping costs out of my pocket).

Guess how many donors we had?
ZERO.

Yup, that's right, not a one.  The good news is we have something REALLY cute to take cancer patients when we go visit them.  Plus, we can always revisit the idea in the future, and I had a great time crafting with my favorite super hero :)

So, why am I telling you about our fail?  Because, it is important for me to show you guys that even the big fundraisers stumble sometimes.  Not every fundraiser is a smashing success.  What matters is, we learn from it, find the good, and move on to the next thing.  After all, you will never know what is going to work, and what isn't going to work unless you get out there and try SOMETHING.

So get out there and do it- #relaybig

With hope,
Cassi

Relay For Life - Fundraising for kids, and why you should never underestimate them!

Wes, my son, tells this story time and again when people ask him how he got involved with Relay For Life.

"When I was 5, I was going with my mom to all of the Relay meetings and events ALL.  THE.  TIME.  One day, I asked her- how come there are never any kids doing Relay?  And she said, I don't know.  So I told my mom I wanted to start doing Relay on my own, and I was going to be the top fundraiser."

Guess what?  That next year- he was.  And, he continues to each year.  His fundraising total for this year is currently at $7,681.43.  He is 8 years old.

EIGHT.  YEARS. OLD.

But the truth is, when he originally asked me why aren't other kids Relaying, I really didn't know.  In fact, I had never even considered it.  Sure I included him in my plans, and he helped me all of the time with fundraising projects, but never in a million years would I have expected him to do what he has done!  So why is that?  Why are we forgetting about our future researchers, doctors, volunteers, and advocates?  I learned something very important.  KIDS CAN make a huge impact on your event, and can make a big difference.  Here is the other thing I learned.  If a 5, 6, 7, or 8 year old can do it- what the heck is my excuse?

I spend a lot of time writing about fundraiser that are great for kids.  You can read those here, and here.   Today I am going to share a few new ones we added this year that worked really well for us. 

All Fired Up!  For Relay For Life.

 Wes loves making stuff to sell to people.  From warm fuzzies to cookies, he is all over it.  But this year, Wes really wanted to do something that everyone could do together, and have fun at the same time.  While at a local paint your own pottery shop All Fired Up! I got to talking to the owner about any ideas she had (she regularly holds kids creativity camps at her store.) And then the most amazing thing happened, she offered to let the kids come paint pottery at her shop. I was so excited that day when I picked Wes up from school, that I couldn't even wait until we got to the car to tell him what Kelly had offered.  His eyes lit up, "EVERYONE can come?"  we went straight home and Wes went to work planning the event. 

Then something crazy happened.  So crazy that I still can't believe it!  Wes saw a commercial for Disney Friends For Change one afternoon, and came into the office. "We should be Friends For Change mom.  Those kids are doing good stuff like we are."  After a quick little Google search, I found a Disney Friends For Change grant program ran by Youth Service America that happened to coincide with our event- during Global Youth Service Day.  I told Wes he could apply for it, but it was very unlikely we would get picked, because SO many people apply for them.  Guess what?  He was awarded the grant to use for his project!

The cost to attend the creativity camp was only $5 per person, thanks to Kelly's generosity.  She provided everything from the pottery to the paint.  She also offered to make up the bid sheets, and let us start the auction at her location so we could get bids before Relay For Life.  Literally, all we had to do was show up the day of, and invite other kids to do the same! Kelly took the time to explain to the kids how to make their art come out extra special, and also asked each child why they Relayed.  She used that information for the bid sheets!

 

You know that Picasso quote that says, "Every child is an artist." - well, it's true.  What they made was amazing, and they had a blast!

 

We were very pleasantly surprised how well the auction went Relay night!  We were a bit worried only the parents would be bidding on their child's art, but that was not the case at all!

 Did I mention the we grown ups couldn't resist and painted items to?  You can see my husbands Cancer Man raccoon, and my tie dye plate below :)

 

I hope this is sparking some ideas for you.  You don't have to do pottery, you could do paintings on canvas, bird houses, ribbons, you name it!  In fact, if you have ever been to my house you know that one of my most prized possessions (and actually, it belongs to Wes not me) is a painting one of Wesley's best friends made of Cancer Man (forgive this picture- this was a picture of the Relay wall while I was getting ready to put up new awards!)

 

Speaking of painting.  In the fall we did something really cool and different.  We painted and sold pink pumpkins for breast cancer awareness!  A local farmer donated the pumpkins after he had pulled all of the ones he could sell- he had plenty of extras that would have just been plowed back into the field :)  Wes and I went to a local Sherwin Williams, and they donated the pink paint!

 

Next up is an oldie but a goodie.  What kid doesn't LOVE to sell lemonade?  I mean, you would think it would have been the first thing that popped into my mind for a fundraiser, but it wasn't!  We had the honor of getting to go help out a new Relay friend with one this year.  The kids had a blast! This stand was set up at a craft show (which also benefited Relay For Life) but the boys are planning on taking this act on the road this summer to 4th of July festivals, and Main Street, Weatherford :)

Not to get too off track, but there is another benefit to having your kids join Relay For Life, ESPECIALLY if they have lost someone they love to cancer.  Kids who have been there are really really good about supporting other kids who have been through the same thing.

 

Now, when all else fails, and your kiddo wakes up one Saturday morning and declares, "I'm going to hit my $6,000 somehow today."  You can always pull this trick out of the bag (let's face it- it's hard to say no to an adorable kid!)

 

The moral of the story?  While you are making plans for your next Relay, don't leave out your littlest Relayers!  They can make a huge impact on your event, and may even be able to teach you a thing or two, or $22,015.

Coming up next- I didn't forget about your tweens and teens!  I know of an ENTIRE Relay ran by youth-subscribe to get notified so I can tell you all about it!