Mister Spiffy Counts His Pennies
Finance – n. The management of pecuniary [monetary, financial]
affairs.
Mister Spiffy Says:
"Why do I save every penny? Why, because back in my day you
could buy an entire meal with a penny!"
Now to figure out just how you plan on paying for all of this.
Are you a millionaire philanthropist? If you are, Mister Spiffy
is proud of you. Just skip this part. If not, stay with me here.
You’ll probably be needing some ideas on admission fees, dues,
auctions, raffles – some good ways of financing the fun. Creating
a budget, collecting money, and using it appropriately are
all-important aspects of a successful reunion. This is why it’s
important to have someone with a good aptitude for money and
figures to act as a treasurer. Also, not that I’m suggesting
anything about your family, but…try to make sure your
treasurer is – well, fairly honest in his or her dealings. You
know what I mean? If you don’t, just never mind.
Creating a Budget
Your first financial task as part of the reunion committee is to
create a budget for anything that is to be
paid for or reimbursed by the reunion committee. Make sure you
include every little bitsy teensy weensy item you can possibly
think of to put on the budget, no matter how small it may be. A
lot of small items can add up in a hurry (remember what I told you
about all those postage stamps)? Plus, it’s always a good idea to
allow a little bit of leeway in the budget to cover any unexpected
expenses. ("What? When did this sugar price go up three cents a
bag? I can’t afford these three extra cents! My budget can’t handle
it!")
Some expenses will be paid directly by your attending family
members (i.e., travel, hotel, perhaps a couple of meals, et
cetera), so you don’t need to budget for those. But, do make
sure that you specify what is and what isn’t included in the
ticket price when you send out the invitations.
Collecting Money
Once you have figured out just how much the reunion is going to
cost you, you have to determine just where you plan on getting
said money. Remember – Mister Spiffy says be sensitive to the
financial situation of your attending family members. You don’t
want to plan a reunion that hardly anyone can afford. That’s not
much of a reunion at all – just sitting around and talking to
yourself, or maybe Mister Spiffy. If you are planning a fancy or
expensive reunion, such as a cruise or some other special trip,
make sure you give your relatives at least a year or two advance
notice so that they can save up, unless you feel like paying for
them.
Charging an admission fee is one common way to fund your
reunion. To figure out the cost per person, fall back on your
basic training in seventh grade math. Averages, remember? If not,
Mister Spiffy will supply you with the formula – take your final
cost and divide it by the number of people attending. At this
point you will have to do some adjusting if you plan on creating
special rates and/or discounts for seniors (senior citizens, not
seniors in high school or college) and small children. Explain
completely in your invitation mailers the ticket price (you know,
cost per person or family) and spell out in great detail what
this does and does not include.
Always set a deadline sometime in advance of the reunion date by
which at least a percentage of the ticket price is required.
Unless you want to cover the costs yourself and just get paid back,
you will be needing money for advance fees and deposits. Also, if
tickets are purchased in advance, people are less likely to cancel
at the last moment. It’s how everyone functions. That way you won’t
end up with a lot of empty chairs or uneaten food that you paid too
much for.
Keep good and accurate records of how much money is collected from
whom, what the actual charges are for budgeted items and when you
receive the money. Have a log of expenses, such as long distance
phone calls and postage. Using a spreadsheet or home accounting
software (if you can actually get the stupid program to work –
Mister Spiffy always has a hard time with computers and their
associates) will simplify this task.
Fund Raising
If you don't want to just collect money from each of the relatives,
you might want to do a little fund raising. Even if you do collect
dues or admissions, a little fund raising can earn some extra money
to make your reunion a little more "spiffy".
Holding an auction at your family reunion is another (and
more creative, in Mister Spiffy’s opinion) way to make money to
support your family reunion. In fact, if this is successful enough,
you can often make enough money to help fund your next reunion as
well (or at least provide the seed money to get the present
reunion’s spawn started). Have each family member provide at least
one item up for auction. Some nice examples or fun ideas to get
them started are the following:
- White elephant gifts
- Surprise bags
- Homemade crafts
- Baked goods or deserts
- Mister Spiffy’s favorite – used doorknobs to add to his
collection
Then just follow along the basic auction idea. Auction it off to
the highest bidder; it’s not too hard. As long as everyone realizes
this is to help fund the reunion, it can be fun even with the
silliest auction items. You’d be surprised what people are willing
to pay for a pencil with a pom-pom glued on top when it’s all for a
good cause like fun, Mister-Spiffy-style family reunions.
A raffle can be a popular and successful fundraising
activity. Have the reunion committee purchase a few nice items,
making sure that they would be popular with the family members.
Don't pick clothes, unless everyone in your family is the same
size. If you’re camping, try a sleeping bag, lantern, or other
camping gear that they may be desperate for by that time. Then
just sell raffle tickets, making sure that you sell enough tickets
at whatever price you choose (a buck or two, I’d guess) to cover
the cost of the item you’re raffling off and put a significant
profit in for the reunion.
Mister Spiffy’s Helpful Hints – Keep an eye on your pennies. Those things have a tendency of slipping away without you noticing, and the amounts disappearing grow as they are urged on by peer pressure from all the other pennies. You must be very disciplined to stay within your budget.