Someone asked me recently: “why Fundraising?”
To which I answered: “because I want to see change”.
When I moved to York a few years ago, I fell in love with a city that shone brightly with affluence, culture, and historical wealth. However, the historically rich, higgledy-piggledy houses cast a shadow onto the cobbles below. Amidst the excitement of tourism, high-end eateries and prosperous Universities, we can miss the cries of those most in need. I felt God was calling me to help bring about change and social justice, and to fight for those who didn’t have a voice. I cannot single-handedly solve poverty and homelessness in York, but I can use the gifts God has given me to be part of the solution.
As the fundraising officer for Restore, my time is split between writing funding applications; partnering with local businesses; and working alongside Hazel to create fundraising events for Restore. One of the best parts of my job though, is to inspire and encourage others to get involved with Restore, and to initiate their own fundraisers. We are often asked “how can I help those I see experiencing homelessness?”. At Restore, we would love to invite you to partner with us and to help us to fundraise. To that end, we have recently published a fundraiser’s pack on our ‘get involved’ page, which gives helpful tips, handy hints and creative starting points for ways to host a fundraising event on our behalf.
You can get involved with Restore’s fundraising in several ways:
- You can attend one of our fundraising events, (such as the Restore Annual Quiz Night, which we held earlier this month).
- You can sponsor one of our staff members or other volunteers to partake in their chosen fundraising or sponsored event.
- You can host your own fundraiser or sponsored event.
- You can give on our website either as a one off or by setting up a standing order.
At Restore, we fundraise so that we can continue to provide the best support for our residents. We want to see change in our city, and we want to see individual lives transformed. We do this by providing a safe and supportive home environment for people who have experienced homelessness. Through your ongoing support, either through financial giving, hosting your own fundraiser, or by supporting existing events and fundraisers, you can help us to help bring about hope, and the restoration of lives.
We would love to see as many supporters as possible getting involved by hosting their own fundraiser. If you have an idea that you would love to turn into a fundraiser for Restore then be sure to have a look at our new Fundraising Pack, or get in touch with us. Whether you choose to host a Eurovision Party fundraiser, or challenge yourself to run the Coast to Coast, the most important things are to have fun, get the word out there about what you’re doing and why, and to get others involved. We look forward to seeing all the creative ways people choose to get involved in supporting Restore, and can’t wait to share them on our social media channels!
If you would like to know more about the work we do, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. You can also sign up for our monthly newsletter. If you would like to support our work financially, please donate here. Thank you.