GROW Fundraising Guide

Get Involved

There is a whole range of ways you can fundraise to make a difference to people affected by mental health problems.

Start your own fundraising event to raise money and change lives.

Every year, people all over the country fundraise in aid of Grow Mental Health. Every cent helps and however you choose to raise funds, just remember to smile and have fun doing it!
If you are seeking to fundraise, here are a few ideas for things you can do to raise funds.

  • Tea or Coffee Morning
  • Sponsored Cycle
  • Sponsored silences
  • Sponsored walk or run
  • Car boot sales
  • Bake sales
  • Shave your head!
  • Give up smoking
Your imagination is the limit! So get in touch if you have a fundraising idea for us we love hearing new ideas. Contact [email protected]

Need tips on maximising your fundraising challenge?

We’re delighted YOU HAVE DECIDED to fund raise for us AND NOW YOU WANT TO RAISE MONEY. HERE ARE SOME WAYS TO HELP RAISE SOME EXTRA CASH.
  • Share the news when you have entered online
  • Share posts from the VHI Women’s Mini Marathon Facebook and Twitter
  • When training share an update on your social media
  • Post pictures following your training
  • Post videos of your training journey
  • Set up a fundraising page using online tools
  • Remind people regularly that you are raise funds

Spread the Word

SOCIAL MEDIA IS A POWERFUL TOOL TO HELP YOU RAISE EVEN MORE MONEY FOR GROW BY LETTING PEOPLE KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING. USE FACEBOOK, TWITTER, LINKEDIN OR PINTEREST TO RAISE THE PROFILE OF WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO DONATE MONEY TO YOUR CAUSE. SOME THINGS YOU CAN DO TO HELP SPREAD THE WORD include:
  • Get your friends and family involved
  • If you’re doing a walk or run, get bonus sponsorship for hitting different milestones like finish under a certain time
  • Sponsor per mile or per minute
  • Wear fancy dress on the day
  • Share your training journey via social media
  • Offer to walk neighbours`/friends` dog for a fee while training
  • Organise lunch time walks – pay as you go
  • Video your training for the event and share it on social media
  • Raise money by organising a training group with friends
  • Ask for a donation instead of presents on your birthday
  • Ask for sponsorship from local business for your charity
  • Sell unwanted gifts or clutter

Facebook Fundraiser: Tips for getting started

Instead of hosting a traditional fundraiser, you can now set up a fundraiser on Facebook. It’s simple to set up and very easy for friends and family to donate to it. Host one for your birthday (especially if it’s a BIG birthday) or if you’re taking part in event eg. a marathon here’s how to get started.

Firstly, thank you for deciding to support Grow with your Facebook Fundraiser. We are so grateful for your kind support and the much-needed awareness you are creating for Mental Health issues in Ireland. Social media-based fundraising can often get lost in today’s internet traffic, so here are some tips you might find helpful in reaching your fundraising goal.

How long will it run for?

Facebook will default to just one week, so we suggest you run it for between two weeks to a month which will ensure you have enough lead-up time before and after the event. You need to give people enough time to see it and allow them to donate.

Fundraising target

It is important to set a realistic and achievable goal for your fundraiser. You can always continue to increase your goal later, if you exceed your goal to early. We have found that people are not a motivated to donate €20 to a fundraiser with a goal of €600 but seem more likely to donate €20 to a fundraiser with a €100 target meaning it exceeds that target and might easily reach the €200/€300.

Initial message

Having started your fundraiser you can send a generic message to those that you talk to most frequently in case they don’t see your fundraiser on their timeline. Something general that sounds personal is best.
“As you probably know this is a cause that’s very close to my heart, I’d really appreciate it if you could donate and help me reach my Goal for Grow Mental Health. Any donation, no matter how big or small will help make a difference. If you can donate right now, I understand but please share this message, Thank you.”

If people can’t donate, always ask them to share instead

Not everyone will be in a position to donate, want to donate or, feels comfortable with internet donations. That’s okay. If you set up your fundraiser asking people to either donate or share the event if they don’t want to donate, your fundraiser will gain more attention than if people who did not donate did nothing at all. The people who were unable to donate will share your event and this means people will see it who perhaps can donate.

Invite your friends one by one

Invite all your friends one by one to your fundraiser. Have 4,000 friends and want to invite them all? This might seem like a daunting task but it’s more straightforward than you think.
Speed up your invites by using a desktop browser to navigate to the fundraiser page. Open the invite dialog and you should see a list of all your friends with an “invite” button beside each one. Facebook limits invites to pages and groups, but it seems like it does not limit the number of invites to a fundraiser.
Click “Invite” for your first friend and press the “Tab” key. The next friends’ invite button should now be highlighted. Press the “Space” key to press the selected button. Then hit Tab and Space for the next friend. Continue to quickly press Tab and Space until you have cycled through all of your friends. If you pass up a friend without meaning to, you can hold “Shift” and press Tab to undo.

During the fundraiser

Facebook timelines are full of content and they might miss your fundraiser. It is important that you contact people several times while doing the fundraiser. You will need people to support you through this process. Most of your donations will come directly from you networking rather than people finding out about your fundraiser through other sources. Actively updating the page on your progress or pieces of information on Grow Mental Health is a good way to engage with your friends. For example, you could post a link to an informative article or video on the fundraising page about Recovery or Mental Health. Videos work really well, and Facebook really like videos so are more likely to show them.

Sharing the link to your fundraiser on other platforms

There are other social media platforms that can help you to reach a wider audience. For example, if you use Twitter you can copy the link and tweet it, send it to people by email, text message, Whatsapp and share it on Snapchat or Instagram.

Thank, thank, thank and thank again

Whenever someone donates to your fundraiser, you will see they have donated below your fundraiser. Make sure to like the post and make sure to thank them as early as you can after they’ve donated.

Update on your fundraising progress

Monitor the donations and give updates on fundraising progress. Increase goals when necessary.

The day of your birthday or event

At this point you will hopefully have received a lot of donations, likes, shares and messages of support. On the actual day you will receive plenty of messages from people you know on your timeline wishing you good luck or happy birthday.
One of the great things that Facebook does is it automatically groups all of these timeline posts together, so it doesn’t fill up anyone’s news feed. Since all the posts cannot be seen, you can reply to them all with a general message and link to your fundraiser without it overloading everybody’s timeline with individual replies.
Post updates every so often on your Facebook expressing your appreciation for their support and keeping them informed on the progress towards the goal. Every time the fundraiser is mentioned it can broaden your reach to more potential donors and every time someone donates, make sure to thank them.

Almost there

When your fundraiser is about 3 days from ending or if you reach your goal early, write a nice public message thanking everyone for their generosity, reminding them all about your great cause they have donated to and how happy they have made you by supporting you.

Finally

Good luck. We really hope you reach your fundraising goal. If you have any questions or need any more information, please do not hesitate to contact me on 01 840 8236 or email [email protected]

RUN the Mini Marathon for GROW Mental Health

Yes, Ladies it’s time to RUN the Mini Marathon for Grow Mental Health on May 31st, 2020.

To take part is easy:

Fundraise over €100 and you will be entered into a draw to win some fantastic prizes.

Become a corporate partner

At Grow Mental Health, we know the world of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has changed for the better in recent years. Your business, organisation or school no longer just want to be seen as socially and environmentally responsible you actually want to invest in your communities and recognize the benefits of this investment.
We believe Grow can support you in achieving your CSR goals and we are open to finding creative and fun ways to achieve this with you!
At Grow, we want to develop and nurture a unique relationship with you; one focused on creating standout, high impact and innovative ways to involve your community in changing the way Ireland views and supports positive Mental Health.
Without the commitment of strategic partners like you we simply cannot deliver the vital services that our most vulnerable people deserve. However, with your support, we can reach more people and support their recovery, take people from isolation to togetherness and from stigma to an understanding that it’s OK not to be OK.
A partnership with Grow will allow your business, school, group or organisation not only to illustrate a commitment to issues directly affecting your community and the country as a whole.
By choosing Grow as your charity partner for 2020, you will be making a tangible impact to people in need of Mental Health support right across Ireland while also improving the lives of those around them. Whether you choose to support us through staff engagement, pro-bono supports, volunteerism, co-promotion and more, you can be assured that your support will make a significant contribution, not just to Grow as an organisation but to the entire conversation on Mental Health in Ireland today and into the future.
To discuss your next charity partnership, contact Sile Tracey at [email protected]

Make us part of your legacy

Keep your legacy alive by helping Grow to support the recovery of people with Mental Health challenges.
After you’ve looked after family and friends, please consider supporting GROW. Leaving a gift in your will can help us build a better and brighter future for people suffering from mental ill health.
If Grow has been a huge part or your life or that of someone you love, keep your legacy alive by remembering Grow in your will.

Michele Kerrigan CEO, GROW said:

“Leaving a legacy gift to support our work is a great way to make a real difference. Helping us carry out our vital work teaching our 12 Step Recovery Program to people who are suffering from mental illness. We believe everyone can recover and we need funds to reach and guide them. When someone decides to leave Grow a gift in their will, their kindness and their generosity lives on, making an enormous difference to people suffering across Ireland. Your gift will directly enable us to continue creating hope of recovery and supporting so many people on their road to recovery. We sincerely thank you for this support”.

Gifts, no matter how big or small, will help those who need us the most. Thank you for caring

  • €500 will allow us to subsidise full attendance for someone in need to attend the Grow annual conference. In some cases, this might be the only break away some of our members will have in any given year.
  • A gift of €1,000 allows us to offer free tea and coffee to all group members before each meeting, for up to a year. We cannot put a value on the social connection this tea and coffee offers our members – it’s simply priceless.
  • A donation of €4,000, would allow us to print a nationwide supply of information leaflets encouraging or remind GP’s to refer their patients to a weekly Grow meeting.
  • €7,500 would allow us set up and operate a new group for one year. Supporting up to 12 people weekly in your local community.
  • A gift of €10,000 would ensure we can spread Mental Health first aid training to 250 people a year. Saving lives!
  • A gift of €20,000 would allow Grow to appoint a part time Area Co-ordinator to cover one to two new counties for a year.
  • €30,000 would allow us carry out 50 Community Education Programmes in a year.
  • A gift of €40,000 would fund our National Information Helpline 1890 474 474 for one year. Including the call back service on our website.
  • A gift of over €50,000 allows us to run a nationwide advertising campaign to promote the existence and success of our 130 Grow Mental Health Support groups across Ireland.

Once you’ve had the time to reflect and discuss your wishes with those who are close to you, we’d love to know your intentions as it will help us plan for the future, ensuring we can maximise our resources to protect Ireland’s Mental Health sufferers. If you have decided to support the many people who depend on Grow, we would love to hear from you.
To find out more about remembering Grow in your will, call Sile Tracey on 01 8408236 in the strictest of confidence, or email [email protected]
Sincere thanks to all those that have remembered Grow in their will to date.
CRA No 20023294 Registered Charity Number 9319

Summer Raffle 2020

This year we will be running a Summer Raffle. The funds raised will be used to subsidise accommodation for Grow members (who otherwise could not attend) at our national conference.
Our raffle will take place during the summer (June, July, August) and if you would like to become a raffle ticket seller, please contact Síle in Grow Mental Health on 01 8408236 or email [email protected].
There are some fantastic prizes to be won including 1st Prize €1,000, 2nd Prize €200 and 3rd Prize €100.
Tickets selling for 5 for €5

Donate by post

Post a cheque, postal order or bank draft to:

Síle Tracey,

Fundraising Office,

Grow Mental Health,

Apt 5, Forrest Mews,

Forest Road,

Swords

Co Dublin.

Cheques should be made paypable to.
Please include your details so we can thank you!

Other ways to donate:

  • Donate by credit card over the phone. You can call us during office hours (9am – 5pm Mon – Fri) on 01 8408236 to make a credit card donation.
  • Donate to Grow Mental Health in lieu of funeral flowers or a gift. If you would like to donate in lieu of flowers for a funeral or a gift for a special occasion please phone us on 01 8408236 for more details.
  • Give as you earn if your employer operates a payroll-giving scheme, you can make a donation to Grow Mental Health straight from your salary. Remember that if you donate over €250 or more to Grow Mental Health. you can enable us to claim back tax on your donation. If there is no such scheme in operation at your place of work, you could suggest that one could be introduced.

Schools and Colleges Programme

Grow Mental Health is so grateful to the many schools around the country that choose to support our charity by undertaking fundraising events on our behalf. We’ve had cake sales, Santa Dash runs and many more. Getting in touch with [email protected] to discuss your initiative.
If you would like our Schools Co-ordinator to come out to your school and give a talk on the work of Grow Mental Health Ireland and the people we support, please contact Síle on 01 8408236 or email [email protected].