Here's an innovative fundraising idea from the Atlanta Council: an email campaign encouraging the donation of economic stimulus tax rebate checks to the Society!

Cajun Cookoff and Street Festival from 6:00 p.m. - midnight. Street musicians, performers, ice sculptures, blues, jazz, and tantalizing treats prepared by local chefs. This year's Cajun Cookoff and Street festival will be held in conjunction with the Mardi Gras Jazz and Blues Festival. All proceeds go to support Art on the Edge, St. Vincent de Paul's children's art program. Tickets can be purchased at St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store in Coeur d'Alene Resort. 

Although lacking a development program and director, the Pittsburgh Council participated in a collaborative fundraising effort with five other local charitable organizations, distributing 2300 copies of their guide to charitable giving.

Madison, Wisconsin's High Noon Saloon hosted a benefit show for Dane County's busiest food pantry. Four bands played at the live-music venue, with proceeds donated to the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry in Madison. 

Amazon.com offers systems through which nonprofits can collect financial contributions and donations of retail products and supplies. Find out how your Council can benefit from their Wish List, Associates, and Honor System programs.

A benefit golf tournament will be held on June 12th at the Grand Bear Golf Course in Saucier, Mississippi to benefit the St. Vincent de Paul Pharmacy. The St. Vincent de Paul Pharmacy is a nonprofit community pharmacy that provides free prescription services to South Mississippians in need of assistance with medical prescription costs. The Pharmacy has offices in Biloxi and Bay St. Louis and provides $1.5 million worth of free medicine a year to people in need. The Pharmacy has served more than 4,000 people since opening in 1998. The format is a four-person handicap scramble. The cost for a four-person team is $750 or $200 individually. To register for the tournament and inquire about sponsorships, call 539-7806. There is a shotgun start of 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday. 

Guests can bid on a ride in the RE/MAX hot air balloon at the second annual “Celebrate” fundraiser dinner and auction for the Community Pharmacy of St. Vincent de Paul. The event is scheduled Nov. 18 from 6:30 to 11 p.m. at the Airport Sheraton hotel in Boone County. Entertainment includes music by Don Fangman, who sings Frank Sinatra hits. The event raised $40,000 last year and this year’s goal is to top that, said Community Pharmacy Development Director Perri Cook. Auction items at the event include the balloon ride, donated by Kent Dailey of RE/MAX Affiliates in Florence; New Year’s Eve tickets to the Bengals-Steelers football game; a three-hour cruise on a private yacht in the Ohio River; autographed footballs, jewelry and original artwork. Tickets are $50 per person. (Kentucky Post, November 4, 2006) 

Local Catholic parishes have raised more than $175,000 in contributions to support the Cincinnati Council’s Imagine the Possibilities campaign

We raised $11,107 for our Conference here at St. Augustine Parish in Kendall Park, New Jersey. All the prizes and raffle expenses were donated, so 100 percent of the raffle ticket sales were dedicated to the Society’s works of charity. -- Claire Schuller, Conference President

The 14th Annual St. Vincent de Paul Run for the Poor will be at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 17. It is a 5K run and fitness walk that will start and end at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, 5900 Buckwheat Road in Mt. Repose, Ohio. The cost is $10 to pre-register, or $13 to register on race day. T-shirts are $9 when ordered during pre-registration and $11 on race day. Pre-registration entries must be postmarked by Friday, June 9. Proceeds benefit the St. Vincent de Paul Society. There will be more than 50 prize drawings and awards will be given to the top 15 percent of each division, based on pre-registration. Also, special awards will be given to the first male and the first female overall. Refreshments will be served after the race. For more information, or to register online, visit www.racedmc. com. Registration forms also can be downloaded from this Web site. Make checks payable to St. Martin District Council -- SVDP, P.O. Box 54424, Cincinnati, OH 45254-0424. 

The annual Fundraising Golf Outing for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul was recently held at Jester Park Golf Course in Granger, Iowa. The 18-hole event included dinner and cost $80 to participate. 

The SVdP’s Council of Baton Rouge had a unique fundraiser called Empty Bowls, hosted by Julie Harrison, Beverly Wilson and all those involved with the Louisiana School for the Deaf and the LSU Lab School This event was focused on combating hunger in their community. Guests at the event received a handmade bowl in remembrance of world hunger. All monies collected were directed to the SVdP Dining Room and the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank. Chef John Folse donated his time and resources to making the delicious gumbo that was served. The event raised over $13,000, of which the Society’s Dining Room will receive half.

Craft Fairs can be easily set up in the gym of your parish school. Invite crafters to rent a table by posting a notice in the community newspapers, church bulletins, etc. Colorful flyers can be distributed on windshields of cars, in grocery stores, retail stores, banks, cleaners, gasoline stations, etc. Holidays are a very popular time for craft shows—how about having a “Christmas in July” or “The Fair for all Seasons” (that includes a touch of all seasons/holidays) or a similar “catchy” theme? Your Conference can enhance the fundraiser by setting up a refreshment area selling coffee, bakery goods, popcorn, hot dogs, snacks and drinks

The Council of Mid-Williamette Valley sponsored a Foundation and Corporate Grants Workshop. They received such an overwhelming response that they had to limit the number of attendees to seventy-five. Attendees learned the components of writing grants, how to research foundations, plus much more from Craig McPherson, author of the Oregon Foundation DataBook, and Gordon Dickey. Foundation representatives from the Ford Family Foundation, Gannett Foundation, Meyer Memorial Trust, Oregon Community Foundation, and Salem Foundation took part in a panel discussion. Participants had the opportunity to ask the panel questions related to their non-profit organization. This was a great event for grant writers!