Donor engagement manager Stephanie Adomaitis and her son, Danny, learning to ride his bike.
By Stephanie Adomaitis, manager of donor engagement for The Rotary Foundation
In my position at Rotary International, I have seen the importance of strengthening our Rotary Foundation. Funds we raise support grants that allow Rotary members to take action to solve complex issues in their communities and around the world.
I’m excited to share about a new online tool, Raise for Rotary, that will give individuals another powerful means to raise the funds necessary to support our Foundation. I have been one of the first to use Raise for Rotary, and in just a month, my online fundraising page raised $590 for PolioPlus. This may not seem like a large amount, but every contribution to the Polio Fund gets us closer to our goal to raise $50 million per year to end polio, with every dollar matched 2:1 by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
It’s easy to use – even on your cell phone – and a fun way to create a personalized virtual fundraiser to share with your friends and family, and gain support for your favorite Rotary cause. You can set up a fundraiser for any occasion, such as a birthday, anniversary, or to mark an important event like World Polio Day. Or you can take on an individual challenge to raise funds, such as a 30-mile bike ride, or fundraise as part of a team of people raising money for the same cause.
I used Raise for Rotary to create a fundraiser with my 4-year-old son, Danny. Our fundraiser was Learning to Ride so we can help end polio, and with the support of our family members, friends and Rotarians – all giving what they could – we surpassed our goal. Danny and I took daily rides and posted photos of his progress as incentive for family and friends to contribute and to give Danny extra incentive to keep going. I was able to help teach my son about the importance of contributing and making a difference, and he also learned to ride his bike!
I’m excited to see first-hand how Raise for Rotary can empower us all to keep doing good in the world. If 200 people raised $500 each, that’s $100,000 that will support Rotary Foundation causes, including the World Fund, Polio Fund, Disaster Response Fund, and Rotary’s areas of focus.
I have been involved in grant projects that have served my community. I am passionate about expanding our fundraising efforts. It’s rewarding to be part of the development team introducing Rotary’s very own peer-to-peer fundraising tool. With Raise for Rotary, you create fundraising pages that are easy to share through social media and email so your network of family, friends, colleagues and neighbors can contribute. Members of Rotary and Rotaract who give are eligible to receive credit and recognition.
This great new tool is currently only available in English with U.S. currency. But we are already planning to expand it to support multiple languages and currency in 2021.
As we work toward that goal, we hope you will take advantage of this tool’s potential to increase your support, and show the world how Rotarians are people of action – doing so much good in the world.
When you start a Raise for Rotary fundraiser, a Rotary fundraising coach will contact you to offer support and guidance. For questions, refer to the FAQs or contact [email protected].
https://blog.rotary.org/2020/10/02/raise-for-rotary-your-new-tool-for-doing-good-in-the-world/