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Host Your Own Event

Balding for Dollars welcomes independent community events. Every year we have numerous events take place that are organized by individuals and groups from communities across B.C. These events can be anything from a head shave/hair cut event, to a bake sale, or live performance. They can take place any time of the year and annual events have proven to be extremely successful.

Many of these events are organized by individuals who have personally had a meaningful experience at B.C. Children’s Hospital or they know someone who did. We’ve also had some pretty extraordinary individuals who have had no prior experience with Children’s Hospital or cancer at all organize events simply because they want to make a difference in the life of a child battling cancer. Isn’t that incredible?

Event Gallery

How to Plan an Event

Step 1: Contact the Balding for Dollars Administrator

Let us know you are thinking about hosting an event, and some of the possible details. We can help guide and support from the start!
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Decide on the 3 W’s

Step 2: The What, When, Where of the event

The What

Like we said earlier the event you choose to host could be anything. It could be a hair-cutting event or a pub night, or simply going around fundraising. Whatever, you choose to do just keep in mind that some events take a little more time to plan than others so make sure to factor that in when you make your decision.

The When

Once you’ve decided on your event, choose a date that suits your audience. For university events, opt for Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday when students are on campus. For pub nights, aim for Thursday, Friday, or Saturday to attract weekend crowds. This helps ensure maximum attendance.

The Where

Once you’ve chosen your event and date, select a location. For school events, choose a central spot with high foot traffic. Other suitable venues include restaurants with large rooms, school gymnasiums, and community halls. Be aware that venue availability may require adjusting your event date.

Signing Up

Step 3: Sign up your team and create your fundraising page

  1. Once there you’ll be led through the sign up process. You’ll be asked to choose a name, fundraising goal, and details about the event. Writing your motivation behind the event and posting photos helps get your message across and really connect with your audience.
  2. Don’t worry about making a mistake with writing the name or goal. As team captain, you can always go back and change it later!
  3. Also make sure to set up your personal fundraising page too!
  4. Fundraising pages are secure and $20+ will recieve an instant tax receipt. You can also collect & ‘upload’ cash & cheque donations so they reflect on your total raised.
  5. Once you’re done that, SHARE your event and unique fundraising link with the WORLD! Text, email, social media, & posters are all great ways to share on how to join & donate. Using QR codes on posters and having them readily available for others to scan on your phone, is a great way to easily get donations. Contact us if you need help setting one up.

Finalize Event Details

Step 4: Plan the Details of the Event

Certain events take lots of organizing and planning so make sure to give yourself enough time. Balding for Dollars is not responsible for expenses incurred in this fundraising process and we encourage event planners to go to the businesses in their communities to ask for donations. We can support your event with some branded materials. Please contact us with what you would like at you event (i.e. banners, balloons, etc).

Bringing It All Together

Step 5: Promote, Recruit, & Have Fun!

  1. Recruiting Participants:
    • Write a list of guests to invite – don’t forget to include your friends, family, co-workers, neighbours, or whoever is appropriate for your event. Reach out personally, use an email list, free online event invite service such as e-vite, create a facebook group or event and send out those invites!
  2. Recruiting Volunteers:
    • Ask your friends and co-workers to help plan your event and assign them with a specific role. Make sure to provide your confirmed volunteers with briefing notes, details on their roles and responsibilities, and training if necessary.
  3. Social Media – A free and effective way to promote your event:
    • Create a facebook event page with your details and link it to your “Balding for Dollars at BC Children’s Hospital” event page, where they can make a donation. Remember to update it often as your event gets closer.
    • If you are on Twitter, tweet your event details and ways to participate to your followers. Let people know why you are doing the event and give progress updates to maintain interest.
    • Do you have a blog? You can share information on why and what you are doing through your blog. Link these blog posts to your Facebook event page and let people know you’ve posted a new blog through twitter and instagram too.
    • Instagram is a great way to engage your followers with visuals. Use eye catching photos and feel free to use the Balding For Dollars logo. Make sure the caption gives details about your event, and why you’re doing it. A reminder that Instagram doesn’t let you link in post captions, so always put the event link in your bio and direct them to find it there. You can also use Instagram stories, and go live to create excitement- just make sure to update often.
  4. News Release – Get your local media involved:
    • If your event is open to the public and you would like to inform your local media about your fundraising initiative, send out a news release to your local paper. Be sure to include information about why you are fundraising and who or what inspired you. You can submit events to most local media stations through their websites as well.
    • Contact BC Children’s Hospital Foundation to obtain the boiler-plate information, including standard Hospital information to include in your news release. Let them know your event is specific to the Balding for Dollars, Oncology/ Hematology/BMT Program here at B.C. Children’s Hospital.
  5. Materials:
    • Balding for Dollars will provide T-shirts, banners, balloons, and other promotional material for your event.
    • Creating Event-Specific Material – Please note – Forward all your customized event materials, including event posters, ads, etc, to us for review prior to printing and distribution, especially if you are including our logo. If you’d like us to send you a high quality logo image to use, please contact us.

The Grand Finale

Step 6: Wrapping up your event

Following your event, arrange to have all cash/cheque donations and any donor/media consent forms brought or sent to Balding for Dollars at B.C. Children’s Hospital.  If you’re local, you and your team will be invited to come to present a cheque with your total funds raised on it to our Main Event at BCCH in May! We always want to celebrate your efforts and thank you in person for all of your amazing work! If you need support with any thank you cards or letters to any of your supporters, please reach out!