This week we kick off our 35th Anniversary Raffle here at SGC. If it seems like we just did this a few months ago, you aren’t entirely wrong: we’ve moved the raffle from the Spring to the Fall in response to feedback from families. And now it’s November! Raffle packets are being assembled, teddy bears have been ordered, and hopefully your girls are planning their strategy to sell the most tickets. But there’s one small problem. Word around the Choir Center is that the raffle is…shall we say…not everyone’s favorite event. It’s not hard to imagine why. As parents, we’re very busy and it often seems that projects assigned to our children become projects assigned to us. But what if there were multiple, tangible benefits to our kids taking ownership of an event like this and doing the work themselves?
Is there a way we could learn to LOVE the raffle?
We’d like to offer some suggestions:
Top Ten Reasons Parents Should LOVE SGC’s Annual Raffle
(in no particular order)
Pride in organization
In crafting a compelling sales pitch, girls need to make a case for why people should support SGC. This is an important opportunity for reflection. Why do we love SGC? What do we want others to know about it? Why am I grateful for my experiences as an SGC chorister? Helping SGC with this fundraiser allows them to feel truly a part of the organization and gives them a sense of pride and ownership.
Community Building
We all sing SGC’s praises, but often we’re preaching to the (forgive me) choir. The raffle is a terrific opportunity to tell people outside our immediate circle about SGC and why we love it. By participating in the raffle, our friends, relatives, neighbors, school teachers, and community members can learn more about our organization, the positive impact it has on Seattle’s Arts community (and our girls), and the amazing work our choristers do every day.
Academic skills
Managing money through ticket sales exercises your daughter’s math skills and opens the door to discussions of financial management. Additionally, a girl who sells tickets via email would need writing and spelling skills to be successful.
Social Skills
Approaching family members, neighbors, and teachers to buy tickets requires making eye contact, speaking to adults, having a positive attitude, and making a clear, compelling case for SGC. These are essential skills and will remain relevant for the rest of their lives.
Organization/planning/goal setting
How many tickets do I need to sell and how will I do it? This project requires setting a goal, planning how to achieve it, and having the discipline to reach the goal. Girls will learn to tackle a project from beginning to end and organize their time and resources for success.
Learning philanthropy/civic responsibility
Rehearsal space, superb faculty, sheet music…it all has a cost and it is often unseen. Developing an understanding of fundraising/budgeting gives our girls an appreciation for how much work goes into sustaining an organization like SGC. Engaging children in fundraising for philanthropic causes contributes to their development of moral judgment and teaches them about civic responsibility. And getting children involved with philanthropy while they’re young ensures they will continue to give throughout their lives. This has a positive impact on our children, as well as society as a whole.
Self-esteem
Setting a personal goal and achieving it is sure to boost self-esteem. Additionally, the raffle asks girls to take a small step outside their comfort zone: to talk to adults and engage with their community for a greater good. In taking these important steps and achieving their goals, their self-esteem will flourish. What could be more important?
Empowerment
In addition to self-esteem, achieving their goal gives girls a sense of empowerment. Children are generally not asked to contribute to their community in a meaningful way since volunteer opportunities are limited in this age-set. Choosing to support an organization for which they are passionate puts them in charge and allows them to feel how important they are to SGC’s success.
Earn back money for expenses
Choir is expensive…that’s a fact. And the raffle gives girls the opportunity to earn credits towards their expenses like tours, tuition, and more.
Teamwork
The choir that sells the most raffle tickets will win a pizza party! This incentivizes the girls to work together towards achieving this goal. Girls can team up to host raffle ticket tables at local grocery stores or organize trips to a neighborhood farmer’s market. Working as a group builds camaraderie among the girls and gives them an opportunity to practice collaboration, an essential work skill.
So, what do you think? Are there any benefits we missed? Sound off in the comments!
And, as always, THANK YOU for being such a wonderfully supportive community.