We are grateful for every one of the thousands of individuals who are motivated to give their time, talent, and treasure to the Red Cross.
But sometimes, a little extra motivation helps. In that spirit, our Chapter’s Development team threw down the gauntlet to our fellow Red Cross’ers.
The challenge? To be the Red Cross staff member to raise the most money for the Red Cross—without even writing a check.
The mechanism? Simple. We asked our colleagues to enroll in
eScrip. With eScrip, every time you go to the grocery store, you present your eScrip card to the cashier, and up to 3% of your purchase comes back to your charity of choice. Choose the Red Cross when you sign up, remember to scan your card at the store, and watch as your dollars for the Red Cross add up over the year.
That extra bit of motivation? To our Chapter colleague who used his or her eScrip card the most over a 3-month time period, we offered the ultimate, coveted reward: a car wash, by none other than the Development Team.
After 3 months of both impulse and planned purchases—including stocking up on those extra items for our disaster supplies kits—the winner was announced. In those 3 months, Jessica Willingham raised $23.36 for the Red Cross—by doing nothing more than presenting her eScrip card when she bought groceries.
Continuing her spirit of giving, Jessica donated her car wash back to the Chapter. So last week, on the second hottest day of the year, the Development team got on our grubbies, broke out the hoses, and made our fleet of Red Cross vehicles shine. A car wash spectator (speaking on the condition of anonymity) best summed up the day’s big event: “It was really fun to see how bad Development’s aim with a hose is, and how the water balloons suddenly stopped flying when our CEO showed up.”
Most importantly, it was pretty incredible to see how much money just one group of Chapter employees could raise to support our Chapter--$183.09 throughout our 3-month competition—by doing nothing more than scanning eScrip cards when we shop. Those dollars will help provide food for clients after their home is destroyed in a fire. They’ll help disadvantaged kids learn to swim, servicemen and women connect with loved ones in times of crisis, and people to learn the CPR skills that might, someday, save a life.
And for that, I’ll keep washing cars.
What motivates you? If you’re looking for a little inspiration, check out all the ways you can give to the Red Cross by clicking the Donate Now button. Our cause marketing link summarizes our current partnerships, including how to sign up for eScrip, and our third party fundraising link lists a whole bunch of suggestions of ways you can motivate others to give.
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| The Development Team! From left to right: Liz Haynes, Corie Story, Evan Chen, Mary Signeri, Janet Oriatti, Arthur Hailand. |
Janet Oriatti is the grants supervisor for the St. Louis Area Chapter.