Sienna Taus | Writer and Student Life Editor
September 14th, 2023
SCHS Girls Varsity basketball team plans to go to Hawaii in November to play in a tournament, which means all players are responsible for raising $1,800 to cover all the expenses. With little instruction on how to raise this money, I felt motivated to get this money creatively. I created a flyer advertising a dump run: I would take people’s trash, old furniture, clothes, really anything they no longer wanted in exchange for a donation. I sent flyers to over 400 homes, hoping some would be interested.
I rented a U-Haul truck to store all the items I was expected to receive. On the sides of the truck was poster paper giving a short description of what was happening to those who threw out the flyers and were confused as to why some 17-year-old girl and her dad were suspiciously driving around their neighborhood all day.
I went to about 25-30 houses and collected whatever they wanted to donate. My favorite item, which I kept with slight negotiation from my parents, was pink boxing gloves. Side note: I do not box. I think they look fantastic.
I collected around 2,500 pounds of things, including cabinets, bed frames, clothes, old beds, overused surfboards, broken appliances, etc. Everything that was too broken I took to the dump in San Juan, somewhere I hope never to return to again, primarily because of the smell and because I would rather donate than throw away. I donated anything of decent quality to Coral Thrift Shop in downtown San Clemente. “I would so much rather donate to thrift stores or Goodwill than give things to the dump,” explained senior Mika Kuhne.
Coral Thrift Store contributes its profits to scholarships for students at SCHS and other programs that benefit the youth in the Capo district. All their staff are volunteers and have been giving back to the community since 1964.
There are so many creative ways to raise money that can benefit others — so the next time someone is asked to raise funds for their sport, extracurricular activities, or something else, do not go straight to one’s parents and ask for the total amount; instead, brainstorm new ideas to get the money. Senior Zona Miller said, “I hate asking my parents for money when I have to raise money for my sports, and I wish there were easier ways to get donations.” Some simple ideas could be a car wash, lemonade and cookies stand, garage sale, selling old clothes, etc. More complicated ideas might take more work, but the reward could be worth it.
Leave a Reply