PAWS is a charity which relies on a small annual government grant and the generosity of public donations to help keep us afloat for the care of our shelter dogs, running costs, vet bills, food bills and maintenance. The funds our supporters raise for us are highly valuable and vital for us to help keep us going. If you are interested in helping us raise these inportant funds, please take a look at our ideas list below. Get your friends and family involved, have some fun and help some rescue dogs in the meantime!
Hold a sponsored dog walk, this can be as big or as small as you like, a gofundme.com page on social media amongst you and your fellow dog owner friends or an event you organise in your local park or woodland, you can ask for sponsorship from your local businesses and get it advertised on a eventbrite or elsewhere to help get the word out! Don’t forget it doesn’t have to be limited to a dog walk, if biking or hiking is more your thing, then go for it!
PAWS for a cuppa afternoon Tea Party, ask your friends and family around for some tea and cake, and ask for an admission donation. Nothing like a gnatter over a cup of tea in aid of some rescue dogs. This is probably an easier event to organise as everyone can get involved, the bakers amongst you can all bring something but store bought is just as good.
Gigs are often held in aid of charity, where nights are held in local pubs and local musicians get involved. A good tip for gig nights is to ask local publicans if there are any nights during the week where they experience a lull and they will be more than happy to help you organise a gig night and help you get the word out to get a crowd in. Local musicians get a chance to showcase their music and you can charge an admission at the door.
School events are some of the most successful charity fundraisers for PAWS as schools are often happy to get involved and there is little organisation required – no homework days or no uniform days where even just €2 per student is raised are hugely appreciated.
PAWS Christmas cards and calendar sales – PAWS will be happy to provide more information on picking these up or posting them out and they are for sale on our webshop. Our Christmas cards and calendars are always anticipated annually and many people think to add calendars in as presents to neighbours and friends or as stocking fillers. Not forgetting, the rescue dogs featured on the calendar helps to generate interest in people thinking of adopting dogs in the new year.
Games nights are popular for student society clubs and student unions in schools and colleges, but can be organised anywhere from having your friends over for fun and games from your own living room or your local pubs or town halls. This is also extremely low cost as people can bring their own games from Jenga to Charades.
Keep fitathons can be organised in communities or local gyms where a spin class or exercise class can be sponsored or something can be organised specially for PAWS. Many gyms are happy to get involved but be sure to talk about insurance or health precautions prior to any organising.
Parachute jumps or other adrenaline sports can be sponsored in aid of PAWS, gofundme pages are a great way of getting sponsorship for these via social media and are always extremely effective at both helping PAWS and ticking something off your bucket list.
Art exhibitions – much like a charity gig night, this is a great thing to organise in local communities where locals can get involved, raises some vital funds for PAWS and help local artists showcase their work.
Sponsored vegan or vegetarian week – friends and family sponsor your meat free week. It helps the environment and raises funds for rescue dogs.
Coffee morning – organised in schools, local coffee shops or even your own kitchen table, get some friends together or even coffee shops might be happy to help make it bigger by having a few paws buckets around on the morning to get some awareness about PAWS out to the public.
Bring and buy sale – may require a budget but find a venue, charge an admission and have everyone bring an item to sell.
Sponsor a dog or a kennel at PAWS and we will issue a plaque on the sponsored kennel in you or your family’s name, get in touch with us for more details.
Coin collection – this may require some permission from relevant institutes but a coin collection in a local shop or even your own home is a great fundraiser.
If organising an event isn’t your thing, maybe this list has helped give you some inspiration or ideas, if not be sure to show your support and get involved with some other events happening in aid of PAWS or help out by simply posting a fundraiser on gofundme or another charity fundraiser website or directly donate on our website, every little helps!
PLEASE NOTE: PAWS is not responsible for any permits, insurance, licenses, etc. These must be obtained by the event organiser. PAWS will not assume any legal or financial responsibility. PAWS is not responsible for any damage or accidents to persons or property. This is an idea generator to help raise some funds. For further ideas, follow this link https://www.paws.ie/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/PAWS_A-Z.pdf
