Fundraising news
Supporting Quaker work in the virtual world
Shopping, banking, contacting friends, watching TV: there seems no end to the things the Internet can allow you to do online nowadays.
The Fundraising Team at Friends House spotted the trend, and have added another possibility: supporting Quaker work.
Through a partnership with the website justgiving, it’s now easy to get sponsored in support of Quaker work. From www.justgiving.com/quakers, you can now set up a sponsorship page in a matter of minutes, safely and securely – no more untidy forms! justgiving makes it easy to keep your sponsors up to date on your walking, running, swimming, eating, head-shaving, bungee-jumping or other activities, too. Our trailblazer for this new way of giving has been Margaret Johnston of Bolton – we reported on her sponsored walk for South Asia in the last Quaker News and her page is still open for donations – www.justgiving.com/margaretjohnston.
A second initiative on the way is a collaboration with eBay, so that sellers can donate a portion of the price of an item to Quaker work. Look out for this at www.ebay.co.uk/charity from next month.
Katie Frost, Community Fundraising Officer at Friends House, says “These new options for giving are so exciting. They’re secure and convenient, and we hope that they’ll encourage people to learn more about some of the amazing work that Quakers do and find new and exciting ways of supporting it!”
Contact:
Katie Frost
katief@quaker.org.uk
020 7866 9508
New learning and activity appeal
In 2007 we ran an activity appeal for our overseas projects where meetings were invited to send for packs and learn about the work done in the name of all Quakers in Britain Yearly Meeting.
We were very encouraged by the response from meetings, who threw themselves into it with enthusiasm. This autumn we will be launching a similar appeal for our peaceworker placement programme.
Quakers in Britain support a vibrant peace movement made up of many organisations working on a huge range of conflict issues. The packs explain why we work on the aspects of peace that we do, what the issues are and how we help in addressing them. This is an opportunity for meetings to involve their whole meeting, old and young, in gaining a greater understanding of our work and unite around raising money to support it.
We will send out appeal packs to meetings on request later in the year. For more on the Peaceworkers Appeal or to learn more about the scheme,
Contact:
Katie Frost
katief@quaker.org.uk
020 7866 9508
Have you made any good bequests lately?
A gift in your will is a great way to support Quaker work, says Paul Peros, of the fundraising team at Friends House.
He’s been very pleased that an increasing number of Friends have requested a copy of our booklet, “A guide to making your will”, since it was updated in June. But it’s worth noting, he says, that making a will isn’t a one-off event: it’s a ‘live’ document, and should be updated every few years.
If you’ve recently been married or remarried or entered a civil partnership, for instance, then you might not realise that a will you made previously is invalid, and you’ll need to make a new one. The same may be true if you or a close relative has had a baby, or for other family changes.
“Keep your will in mind whenever your situation changes,” Paul advises. “A will shouldn’t just be gathering dust at your solicitor’s office – it’s an active document which can reflect your personal values and your circumstances as they change throughout your life.”
For a free copy of our booklet, which includes information on amending your will,
Contact:
Paul Peros
paulp@quaker.org.uk
020 7866 9509