Fundraising can be as simple or as complicated as you make it.
From setting up a Facebook fundraiser to organizing the Pink Ribbon Ride, an annual equestrian dressage clinic, BRIGHT Run teams and individuals are limited only by their imaginations!
We’ve seen book sales, plant sales, bake sales, garage sales, yard sales, lemonade/cookie stands, craft sales, private label wine sales, online spin-the-wheel games, 50/50 draws, and pink ribbon card sales.
We’ve seen trivia nights, paint nights, a contest to guess the number of bras in a pink-wrapped Smart car, flamingo flocking campaigns, dinner dances, online auctions, live Facebook tutorials on how to make your own pizza, handmade jewelry zoom classes and, this month, what may be BRIGHT Run’s first fundraising comedy night!
Holly Ngo, for example, is a first-time BRIGHT Run team captain who has become a fundraising hurricane!
Holly, a married mom of three children plus a golden retriever, was diagnosed with early stage breast cancer in 2022. She works as a medical secretary supporting the radiation oncologists at the Juravinski Cancer Centre (JCC).
Last year, she joined an existing team of JCC nurses. This year, she registered her own team, Holly’s Hope.
“I love making gift baskets and I love shopping,” Holly said. “Our first fundraiser was a Mother’s Day gift basket raffle.”
Next came an online auction, with items she had purchased at liquidation stores. Then Holly lucked into an opening at the lobby sales area at the JCC, bringing leftover auction items and more.
“This was special to me as I got to connect with the patients in a way I hadn’t before,” she said.” Having my daughter be part of it also meant a lot to me.”
The lobby sale went over so well with her co-workers that Holly started a “mall in the hall” in her office area. Her co-workers, she says, love the excuse to shop – at work, no less!
One day, Holly came upon a box of little ducks while she was – you guessed it – shopping! That triggered her memory of the recent BRIGHT launch party, where she had learned about the flamingo flocking campaigns set up by BRIGHT team Let’s Bust a Move!
“Our flock of ducks go to visit the physicians’ offices when they least expect it!” she said. “To have them removed, they must pay a “duckt cleaning service fee (aka a donation to Holly’s Hope). And they get to choose who gets ducked next!”
Next up is a pizza day, with a generous discount from Holly’s local pizza shop.
Holly’s fundraising advice is pretty simple – don’t be afraid to ask for support and sponsorship. She acknowledges this made her nervous at first, “but the worst that can happen is they say no. Just be creative, silly, and have fun with it!”
“I think I have learned what my passion is in doing this,” Holly said of her BRIGHT fundraising activities. “I truly feel at a place of purpose in my life, and it has been so rewarding to help raise money for local breast cancer research.”
