Fundraising Special Events: Charity Dinner or Gala

A charity dinner or gala are fundraising special events. It takes a tremendous amount of planning and coordination but done properly these events can become a great tradition for your organization or community.

When you think “gala” you may envision a special event full of high style, well dressed individuals in an exquisite environment. Well, typically, that is what is meant by a gala but it doesn’t always have to be so high end. You will define what your organization means by a "gala" and make it work for you.

There are a lot of details involved with making these fundraising special events run smoothly as well as be profitable. For goodness sake, all of this effort better equal big bucks for your organization! You’re not just doing it so you can get all dressed up for a big night out. :)

We’ve put together a few critical tips and a checklists for you as you begin to plan.

ACCESS OUR FREE TOOLS THROUGH THE LINKS BELOW

Event Planning Checklist - everything you need to know BEFORE you begin.

Event Budget Template - a great tool to help maximize your efforts!

One of the most important elements to determine in the planning stages is the make up of your volunteer structure. Who will be in charge, what will their job responsibilities be and when do they need to be done?

Let’s look at a typical fundraising special event volunteer committee structure to see what it takes.

Volunteer Committee Structure

How many people does it take to run a fundraising special event? Well, the answer depends on many factors. Your number one strategy for success is your volunteer committee. As such, an organized committee with clear tasks and responsibilities is critical. Depending on the size of your event, you could have individuals assigned to one or more committees. Synergy and communication are key. Your motivated volunteers will help generate the needed ideas and energy to make your event special AND successful.

Everyone is so busy these days that it is most important that there are clear expectations set at the beginning of the process. Here is a suggested committee structure

• Steering Committee: made up of Co-chairs of all other committees
• Event Activities: this committee can be broken down further (for example, raffle, special fundraising appeal, etc.
• Decorations
• Entertainment
• Public Relations/Marketing:
this committee would include creation of all printed material (invitations, program, event signage in addition to managing whatever online presence you desire.
• Sponsorship
• Registration and Bank: This committee is in charge of the administration of the invitation process from beginning to end including mailing, tracking, confirmations, etc. This committee can include check in and check out process and procedures at the event. Also, this committee helps with the final reconciliation process to determine your total event profit (i.e. "the fun part" of the event!)
• Break down and clean up
• Thank you/Recognition

As you can see, many of these committees could be combined or even broken down further depending upon the complexity and size of your event.

If you organization has paid staff many of these tasks and responsibilities will be taken on by them. But, many hands make the work easier. Just be sure to have clear expectations about the roles and responsibilities of all people involved in creating a spectacular special event fundraising gala for your organization.

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