Painless fundraising takes the work out of raising money

The PTSA painless fundraising committee, led by parent Carol Smalls, has found a few simple ways for Blazers and their parents to help the school without any extra effort.

This holiday season, Blazers can win money for Blair through the Shop to Care program at Westfield mall, which runs from Nov. 24 - Jan. 14, Westfield malls are sponsoring the Shop to Care Program. Students who turn in the shopping receipts can earn points for Blair for each dollar spent, earning double points on Mondays. Westfield Mall has two locations in Montgomery County, one in Wheaton (including the surrounding shops) and the other in Bethesda. The organization with the most points at the end of the program will receive a $5000 cash prize and all organizations that accumulate at least $2500 will split another $5000. The receipts can be taken to the concierge at the mall or copies can be turned into the PTSA mailbox in the main office. "If we can inform more shoppers to get their receipts tallied, we have a decent chance of getting money," said Smalls.

Throughout the school year, Blazers can also raise money for Blair by using their Giant Bonus Card or Safeway Club card when they buy groceries at these stores. At Giant stores, each purchase earns A+ Bonus bucks, which then are used to determine the amount of money Blair receives. So far this year, Blair has earned $1,860.22 through the Giant Bonus Card program. To register, which must be done every school year, visit the Giant and Safeway web sites or send name, address and card number to the PTSA. Similar programs exist at Food Lion, Snider's, Target and Office Depot.

Last year, Blair raised $4369 through a combination of the Giant, Safeway and Target programs. By raising awareness of these programs, Smalls hopes that Blair can earn even more money this year. "Last year just the grocery programs raised over $5,000 at Takoma Park Middle School, she said.  "A school the size of Blair should get much more money." 

For more information on painless fundraising, please visit the PTSA web site.