You’re fundraising for what club?

I love my neighborhood. I love my neighbors, and I don’t know too many people who can say that. We have children outside nearly all hours on the weekend, and anytime that my children need a playmate, we just have to step outside our front door. Someone is bound to cruise by on a bike and strike up a conversation. That said though, we live in the land of “Never Ending Fundraisers.” That’s the price for living among school-aged children, throngs of them.

How many times have you been hit up for school and club fundraisers this year? I have (since the first of the school year) purchased Auntie Anne’s frozen pretzels, cookie dough, plastic drinking mug with the mascot of my choice, popcorn, and the ubiquitous Entertainment coupon book. My husband and I eye each other anytime that the doorbell rings, and we gauge each other to see who is the bigger sucker at the moment. That person is forbidden from opening up the door, but even our system has yielded more than our fair share of “fundraiser stuff.”

What boggles my mind is that half of the organizations do not allow for flat donations. Most of the time, fifty percent of the profits from the fundraisers go to the school or organization so I have offered to donate just half of what I would have spent buying the junk in the first place. Nearly always I have been told no. Why? I’m offering cold hard cash. I don’t get it. Take it! Especially in this economy!

I do have to give credit though for the kids who go door-to-door, for their gutsy salesman-ish sort of way. It is far more noble than the child who leaves the fundraiser packet with a parent at work. That to me is just cheating, and a kid like that should not reap the crappy prizes for selling x amount of product. That’s mean of me to think that, right? Too bad.

We are just one year away from my own child entering kindergarten. It is just a matter of time before she is coming home with the gift wrap, three flavor popcorn tin fundraiser forms. When that happens, I’ll help her walk door to door (or maybe consider even just paying off the organization with a flat donation which they will likely refuse because selling stuff to people is a better way to go obviously). I cringe at the idea that she will be pestering the neighbors, but it is also sweet revenge. We have doled out our share over the years, and it will be time for us to turn the tables.

I am ranting because I am once again awaiting the delivery of my next frozen cookie dough box. *sigh* Anyone smell sucker in the air? Me too. The cookies had better be good.

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2. Great American Bake Sale – Volunteer bakers needed!
3. Austin Children’s Museum Celebrates Its Second Imaginarium Gala with a tribute to its “Superheroes”
4. Let the school journey begin.
5. Working 9 to 5…