How to Host a Fundraising Brunch

Chef Carrie, presides over the delicious spread.

Here are some things I know to be true:
- Brunch is the greatest meal invented
- Entertaining is fun
- Volunteering is sexy

It should come as no surprise then, that I said "yes!" without hesitation when my close friends Regina and Carrie asked if I would be interested in hosting a brunch at my apartment to fundraise for Planned Parenthood.  After all, what with the government threatening to shut down, I'm happy to support them in any way I can.

Regina and Carrie hosted a brunch last fall to help fulfill their fundraising commitment to sitting on PPWP's board, and it was so fun and such a success, we decided to do it again.

Brunch is so exciting, jazz hands were obviously in order.

The thing is, hosting a brunch is a really easy way to fundraise.  It's low stress, low pressure, and low cost for both you and your friends that you invite.  If you ever want to raise some fast cash in a couple hours to help support one of your favorite organizations, I would definitely recommend hosting a brunch.  

Here's what we do:

We supply the food and beverages.  We invite our friends, and invite them to invite their friends.  We collect $20 per person who comes, and we donate the proceeds.  We all have fun.

Like any good kid raised by Midwestern parents, the coffee maker went on at 7:30 and didn't turn off until well into the afternoon.  If you're an experienced entertainer, perhaps you already have a large caterer-style coffee urn.  I do not. (yet) But I do have a carafe, so am able to have 2 pots of coffee hot at any given time.  Also, use mugs.  We had paper products for everything else, but coffee tastes better out of a mug.

Enlist lots of help:

Eric made sausage patties.

Bethany made Sangria.

Regina was taking pictures.

Brunch has some lovely beverage options.  We offered:

Mimosas!

Bloody Marys!

And of course, the aforementioned coffee and sangria.

I made waffles.  This waffle iron was a wedding gift to my parents.  I took it with me when I moved to Pittsburgh.  More than 30 years old, and it's one of my favorite small appliances.

And of course, what I consider to be central to any successful gathering.  The cheese plate.

But, what really made the day a success were these guys:

And these folks...

And all of them.

Big THANK YOU to everyone who came, cooked, hung out and supported.  We had a blast, and of course, can't wait to do it again.