Creative fundraising abounds for local area not-for-profit organizations

By Dave McGowan

The necessity to raise funds brings out the creativity of our area not-for-profit organizations. Here are a few examples:

Hinsdale’s own Assistance League of Chicagoland West hosts its Books & Brunch every November, and it’s a community favorite featuring interesting conversations with book authors.
alcw.org

Just up the road is the No Frills Fun Run, which has raised funds through a run, golf outing, and pickleball tournament.
nofrillsfunrun.org

A first for DuPagePads in 2025, its Charity Challenge: The Great Descent hosted 100 supporters to rappel 12 stories down from the roof of Hotel Arista, located in the heart of the CityGate Centre dining and entertainment campus in Naperville, Illinois.
dupagepads.org/event/charity-challenge-the-great-descent/

How did Bridge Communities benefit from Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour last year? Well, one of its donors gave them two tickets to her Indy concert. The Bridge staff brilliantly rented a hotel room well in advance to accompany the concert and sold 300 raffle tickets at $100/each for the trip. The only costs were the hotel room night and some staff time to design and implement the digital campaign.
bridgecommunities.org

Are there celebrities living in Naperville? There sure are! And they come out to cook or judge the cooking at Loaves & Fishes’ Chef Showdown.
loaves-fishes.org/chef-showdown-2025

Tuskegee NEXT, which seeks to transform the lives of at-risk youth through aviation education, goes thematic, hosting its Red Tail Ball at the DuPage Airport.
tuskegeenext.org

The creative team at the Wheaton Public Library uses its beautiful building to host its Mad Fore Plaid miniature golf event on site.
wheatonlibrary.org/mad-fore-plaid

What did DuPage Foundation do when it couldn’t hold its in-person gala at the peak of COVID? It hosted an online event, with meals delivered to the homes of the table hosts, along with a broadcast program.
dupagefoundation.org

How collaborative is DuPage County? Very. Just check out Giving DuPage Day, which allows community residents to support local organizations, many of which donors wouldn’t have been aware.
givingdupageday.org

A few more creative tips:

When starting a campaign, many not-for-profit donors use their early, and usually larger, gifts as challenges to other potential donors. Who doesn’t like leverage?

Almost all organizations that host galas with silent auctions share the auction link with all their constituents, not just those attending the event. The sooner they can release the link, the more bidders and bids they attract. These early link releases also sell more attendee tickets.

Lastly, here’s a novel idea for the not-for-profits out there: instead of trying to come up with the next most unique fundraising event, sit down and have meaningful conversations with your loyal annual donors. You may just find impactful ways they can contribute beyond purchasing an event ticket, a silent auction item, or a raffle ticket.