Author Topic: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?  (Read 3933 times)

Malaysia41

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In 2012, while living in Malaysia, I FIREd. With all that free time, I reached out to UNHCR to see how I could help the local Rohingya refugees. I ended up teaching English at a small school. I quickly realized that I'd serve them better by raising $ to pay trained teachers to teach them.

So I started a charity called Rohingya Refugee Education Fund.

This month, October, I want to raise 2017 salaries ($28k), and if possible, seed an endowment fund ($10k) and pay for some admin expenses ($2k). So far, my efforts posting to LinkedIn and FB have yielded anemic results. The most I've raised has come from mustachians reading my journal here.

So two requests.
1. If you'd like to donate please do!
2. If you have ideas for raising this money - please share!

Here's the donate page, including fundraising tracker.

Here's the amazon smile URL:  https://smile.amazon.com/ch/47-4237059 (picture below - this went out on FB and twitter and will go out on LinkedIn)

Here are two NY Times articles about the plight of a family at the school (one of the kids is in the pic with me on the donation page):

After a Year, Rohingya Family Still Separated and Stranded (July 5, 2016 NY Times, Chris Buckley) – update on a family with kids at our school.

Myanmar Rohingya Refugee Crisis in Malaysia (July 6, 2015 NY Times, Chris Buckley) – about a family with kids at our school.


llorona

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #1 on: October 05, 2016, 12:55:22 AM »
A few tips:

First, looking at the main page of your website, the story isn't clear to me. It leaves too many questions. For instance, who are Rohingya refugees? How many of them are there? Are they all in Malaysia? (No, including a link to Wikipedia doesn't cut it.) Who is UNHCR? Who are the kids in this school and what is their age range? What is their grade level? How big is this school? What does it look like? What's the "RREF" mentioned on the first page? Who is responsible for hiring professional teachers - you? What are their qualifications? How much are they paid? How many teachers will be hired with the $28K you hope to raise? Who are you and what are your qualifications? Point is, you've got to step out of your own head and think about whether people visiting your site will get what you are saying.

Second, why should I or anyone else care about this particular cause? What does it matter if the school is underfunded? What is the impact? Most people won't take the time to extrapolate, such as: school is underfunded -> kids won't receive an education -> kids without an education lack economic prospects -> lack of economic opportunity is linked with long-term poverty, unemployment poor health, etc. -> not supporting the cause now means that the future is in the toilet for an entire community of children. I know it's very clear to you because of your involvement, but you've got to spell it out so everyone can understand.

Third, you've also got to target your appeal to people who care -- in most cases, the individuals who give you money will have some sort of interest or stake in the refugee community or the school. Perhaps they originally came from Myanmar or they were refugees themselves who found their way out of poverty via education. Another likely prospect is people who personally know you (e.g., parents, siblings, best friend, neighbors, business colleagues, etc.) or others people involved in the school, like teachers.

Fourth, anytime you make a group ask on a forum liked LinkedIn or Facebook, you will receive a lower response than if you approached people in a more personal format, such as sending them an email or a letter with an ask. (I wonder if there have been studies on this. It probably has something to do with diffusion of responsibility...) You also  might want to read up on other forms of fundraising like house parties.

Fifth, while I appreciate your commitment to financial transparency, why are you trying to raise money for an endowment fund? I understand that endowments can contribute toward fiscal stability,  but you're putting the cart before the horse. You need operating reserves before you create an endowment fund. It's the same principle as personal finance - you've gotta create an emergency fund before you start socking away money for retirement.

Lastly, you need to have a team to help you fundraise! If you've got IRS 501(c)(3) status, you must have a Board of Directors. How are they helping? Are there any other allies you can recruit to assist with fundraising?

Hope this is helpful.

« Last Edit: October 05, 2016, 02:40:08 AM by llorona »

Malaysia41

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #2 on: October 05, 2016, 09:53:28 AM »
Thank you llorona.

I've made some initial edits based on your keen feedback - I think it's much better now. Still have some work to do - esp on other pages, but it's much better thanks to your questions and comments.

As for the endowment fund - I'm eager to get this self-funding so I don't have to fundraise. Also, for people who prefer to contribute to that it gives them the option. Yes - kind of getting the cart before the horse. I have received a donation that is earmarked for the endowment fund. Personally, that's where I'd want my money going. But you are right: I should focus on raising 2017 salaries first.

The board of directors consists of me and my mom. I have a few people in mind to add, but haven't yet.  I know this sounds wishy washy, but I just sort of did this effort out of the blue. It's not what I would call 'my calling' or even my main focus. I just thought I could help.

Thanks a ton for your advice. You've helped me think of this from the perspective of donors. I was trying to do that but I wasn't asking myself the right questions. Again, thanks.

Fishindude

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #3 on: October 05, 2016, 09:58:44 AM »
I'm always more supportive of someone asking for charity if they practice what they preach.
For example ...... personally match all contributions fifty cents for every dollar they contribute.

Malaysia41

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #4 on: October 05, 2016, 10:00:10 AM »
Hmm. Well, I've already spent thousands. I was thinking of saying I'd match donations - but I've already put in the $. It felt disingenuous. I'll think on how I could leverage this though.

Malaysia41

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #5 on: October 05, 2016, 10:03:10 AM »
$4863 to be precise. :).  Plus all the time. More hours than I could count.

mozar

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #6 on: October 05, 2016, 04:26:00 PM »
It's a nice website but can you do video?

That helps people understand exactly what they are funding. There is a vlog on youtube I like called jamieandnikki, and Jamie went to South Africa recently and did a nice fundraiser video for the school.

And if you're not willing to put in a sustained effort to help these people, you're not really going to help.

GoConfidently

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #7 on: October 05, 2016, 05:07:15 PM »
This is just my opinion, but I like giving to concrete and attainable goals. I can't donate the annual salary of a teacher, but if I know that $50 can buy books for 4-6 year olds, I can do that. So maybe add levels to your donation page. $x provides 1 months salary for a teacher, or $2x allows us to provide xyz materials. It makes the experience more personal.

I also think food is a great motivator. Can you host a benefit banquet, community pot luck fundraiser, or get some restaurants to donate a portion of proceeds to the cause on a specific night? (I don't know where in the world you are right now so this might not be an option but I'm throwing it out just in case). If you can't, can friends or family do it in their communities?

Malaysia41

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #8 on: October 05, 2016, 10:44:51 PM »
It's a nice website but can you do video?

That helps people understand exactly what they are funding. There is a vlog on youtube I like called jamieandnikki, and Jamie went to South Africa recently and did a nice fundraiser video for the school.

And if you're not willing to put in a sustained effort to help these people, you're not really going to help.

This is why I consciously set an achievable goal, rather than taking over the whole school, and becoming the director. Instead, I'm mentoring the director, and carving out my piece which is raising money. I didn't mean to say I'm not dedicated to this cause. I mean, I went through the arduous process of filing a 1023 form for 501c3 approval, and let me tell you that's a hair pulling experience - well at least for someone like me who hates that kind of paperwork. I'm just saying that this isn't my full time thing. But a sustained project - yes I'd characterize that way. I don't know, does that make sense? I'm committed to continuing to help. I'm just not putting 40 hours a week into it. 

At some point, you realize you can't save the world. But I just thought I'd try to help these handful of kids. They have access to just about zero. The local government - the police - actually prey upon them, jailing their family members and demanding ransom. The national government pretends they don't exist. It enrages me. Anyhoo - I realized I was in a unique position to do something. But now it's come to the point where I have to fund raise, and well, I kinda hate fundraising (I know - I shoulda seen that coming).

What I need to focus on now is telling the story - polishing it and making it instantly consumable.

My friend from college is taking my story to her friend who runs an org that regularly funds these sorts of charities. I'm hoping he'll kick down a few $k.

Yes - videos. I'm due for my monthly video to them, and then I'll pester the local volunteers to make 60 second response video. I can post, and then you can see the kids :).

Thank you for the suggestions everyone. You've got my wheels turning, which is what I needed. I was feeling stuck in the mud, but now I'm rollin' again.


Malaysia41

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #9 on: October 05, 2016, 10:47:30 PM »
This is just my opinion, but I like giving to concrete and attainable goals. I can't donate the annual salary of a teacher, but if I know that $50 can buy books for 4-6 year olds, I can do that. So maybe add levels to your donation page. $x provides 1 months salary for a teacher, or $2x allows us to provide xyz materials. It makes the experience more personal.

I also think food is a great motivator. Can you host a benefit banquet, community pot luck fundraiser, or get some restaurants to donate a portion of proceeds to the cause on a specific night? (I don't know where in the world you are right now so this might not be an option but I'm throwing it out just in case). If you can't, can friends or family do it in their communities?

Ha - funny. Just last month I simplified the menu down from options like books and supplies. Ha.

I'm in Italy now. Not sure anyone here feels motivated to give to an Islamic school in Malaysia, as there's plenty of anti-Islamic sentiment going around what with so many refugees coming in to the country and the wider EU. But when I'm back in the states later this year, I could see this working.

Malaysia41

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #10 on: October 06, 2016, 11:25:03 PM »
@llorona - every day I FB message a handful of people directly, one at a time, asking for them to sign up on the amazon smile account, or donate via the website. They usually reply with 'will do' for the amazon smile account at least. Thanks for nudging me to ask directly.

I've been adding in an email or two every day as well. I write them so they can easily forward the email on to anyone.
« Last Edit: October 06, 2016, 11:35:07 PM by Malaysia41 »

mxt0133

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #11 on: October 07, 2016, 12:20:15 AM »
I don't know if this will help but when I had to raise funds to help typhoon victims in my home country my wife and I did a bake sale and threw a fundraising party.  I also created a fundraising site, which you already have, and sent it to everyone I knew as well.  Mind you we had to spend money to throw these events but we did better than I could have imagined.  One thing that I think helped at the time was that it was a recent event and people related to it because it was still in the news.

You have to find a way to make it relevant to people without them having to read for more than 2 minutes.  Something like an elevator pitch that can reach thousands of people, how you might go about it I have no clue.

If that doesn't work, you can try the NGO's or foundations with the big pockets like the Gates foundation or others that are sympathetic refugees and displaced people.

Good luck!

Malaysia41

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #12 on: October 18, 2016, 02:20:50 AM »
Re making it relevant (mxt0133) - it's probably old news to people at this point, even if the stories of boats floating in perilous waters were as recent as a year ago. That's ancient history in the news cycle.

Here's my attempt. Weeks ago, I video taped questions, and just today, the kids answered the questions, "What is Verona famous for" and "Who was the English playwright who wrote a story based in Verona?"

M41's class answers questions about Verona

What do you think?

Our plan is to do these quick Q&As once a month.

arebelspy

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Re: I started a charity for Rohingya Refugees - how do I raise money?
« Reply #13 on: October 18, 2016, 03:29:08 AM »
I've been thinking about this, was hoping to go see it when we were in Malaysia.  Maybe next time.

Following for updates and reminders about this.
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