Special Events Guide. Best practices, ideas and advice to help make your special events a success.

Special Events Guide Best practices, ideas and advice to help make your special events a success. 1

Table of Contents Best Practices.... 3 FAQs: Income Tax Receipts...5 FAQs: Licensing and Permits....6 Special Event Ideas....9 Wrapping Up Your Special Event..13 Appendix A- Special Events Checklist 14 Appendix B- Special Event Planner.16 Special Events Form 18 2

SPECIAL EVENT BEST PRACTICES Special events can raise funds, create awareness, promote team spirit and encourage friendly competition for all involved. They are meant to be fun and can be an effective tool when properly planned and implemented. Some key best practices for running your special event include: 1. Run your pledge drive before hosting your special event- Special events are a great way to complement your campaign, but focusing the majority of your efforts on your pledge drive and hosting your special events after you have run your pledge drive have proven to maximize donations. 2. Have a Plan- Sound logistics planning is absolutely crucial to the success of any special event. See Appendix A and Appendix B for special event planning resources. 3. Make it a Team Effort- When planning an event for your workplace, involve as many of your colleagues as possible. 4. Recruit an Events Coordinator- Recruit a colleague who is resourceful and creative to help you organize and manage your special event and develop his/her own team of volunteers to focus on this area of your campaign. 5. Involve Senior Management- Involve senior management with your plans for special events, including receiving any necessary permission for activities and an invitation to senior management to participate. 6. Contact your United Way Representative- Let us know you are planning a special event! Your United Way Representative is a great resource for helping you to plan a successful event and overall campaign. 7. Book an Impact Presentation- An invaluable resource that can be utilized when conducting your campaign is United Way Regina s Impact Presentations. Involving a speaker in your campaign at kickoff, wrap-up and special events or in-between can make a dramatic impression on listeners and create a greater level of awareness of the issues that United Way Regina is working to combat. 8. Be Visible- Use promotional materials to keep United Way Regina a visible part of your event. Hang up posters, balloons and banners. Hand out United Way Regina promotional materials to all event participants. Play a United Way campaign video at an event kick-off or wrap-up. These materials give your event purpose and meaning, while 3

creating awareness and spreading enthusiasm. You can request these materials from your United Way Regina Representative. 9. Consider Cost- Add up your volunteer and staff time, and costs for supplies, food and facilities to make sure you are able to cover your costs. In some cases, you may be able to find sponsoring companies for your special events. 10. Keep Good Records- Be sure to keep a record of important details including costs, dollars raised, what went well and what you would improve about your special event to help next year s planning go a little smoother. See Appendix B for Special Events Planner. 11. Have fun and celebrate your success! - It is important that special event participants and volunteers have fun and see the measureable benefit of organizing a special event through the dollars raised, the number of employees participating, team building, etc. Be sure to also thank and recognize the volunteers who helped with your special event. Questions to consider: What do you want to accomplish? Raise awareness? Boost employee morale? Raise money? Has this event been tried before? Was it successful? How much money did it raise? How many employees participated? How much time is needed? What are your resources? What is your budget? Who will organize it? Do you need special approval, a license or a permit? How much time is required to obtain approval, a license or a permit? 4

FAQs: TAX RECEIPTING Q: Are special event participants eligible for income tax receipts? Short Answer: No Tell me more: This is because special events typically offer value for money (ex: food or ticket). For a charitable receipt to be issued, a donation must be made voluntarily, with nothing expected in return. No charitable donation can be used to buy goods, services, a chance to win a prize, or other intangible benefits. Q: Can an individual who donates a prize to a workplace fundraising campaign receive a tax receipt if the proceeds of workplace campaign are donated to a charity? Short Answer: No Tell me more: The only time a tax receipt can be written is if the individual donates an item to a charity and that charity uses that item for its own charitable purposes or as a prize in its own fundraiser. United Way can only write a receipt for prizes donated for our own fundraising activities. A business might consider claiming the donated prize as an advertising expense however private individuals do not have this avenue. *Please note that a tax receipt may not be issued as a prize. Tax receipts must be issued directly to the individual who made the donation. 5

FAQs: LICENSING AND PERMITS Did You Know? When you apply for a gaming license through United Way Regina as part of your Charitable Campaign, United Way Regina is eligible to receive an SLGA grant equal to 25% of the net proceeds earned! Q: Which events do I need a license for? A: As a general rule of thumb, most events with a gaming or gambling aspect to require an SLGA gaming license. These include: Raffles 50/50 s Pools (e.g. Sports pools) Lotteries Mock Casino Events (e.g. Texas Hold em ) Bingos Breakopen Tickets Q: How do I apply for a gaming license? A: Every organization has the ability to apply for a maximum of 2 Public Amusement and Municipal Raffles per year. As a registered charity, United Way Regina has access to unlimited raffle licenses. United Way Regina wants to help, so we are offering to work with you to apply for your special event licenses and ensure that we meet the legal requirements of the license. We will consider co-application for special event licenses that meet the following criteria: 1. Each license will have a prize value of no more than $2,500. 2. The representative from the workplace agrees to work in partnership with the United Way Regina to ensure all legal obligations of the license are met. 3. License can be for 50/50 s, Raffles and Sports Pools, but not for Bingos. 4. The application form will be submitted to United Way Regina with as much notice as possible. Note that although SLGA makes every effort to process applications quickly, they can enforce the 30 days notice requirement, therefore we recommend submitting your request to United Way at least 5 weeks prior to the event. 6

Complete the following steps: 1. Go to the United Way Regina website: www.unitedwayregina.ca 2. Scroll down and Click on Annual Campaign 3. Click on Go To Campaign Resources to get to the Resource Centre 4. Scroll down under Campaign Forms Under Gaming Licenses click on Gaming License Application 5. Download the application and complete all the fields. Note: The prize value of 50/50 s can be no more than $2,500 per license. There can be multiple 50/50 draws on one license, but the overall prize value cannot exceed $2,500. Raffles must each have a separate license. The value of tickets printed for a raffle cannot exceed 12 times the retail value of all prizes to be awarded. 6. Save and email the completed application to campaign@unitedwayregina.ca. If you are unable to save the document, print it and either scan and email it to campaign@unitedwayregina.ca or fax it to (306) 522-7199. 7. Once the completed application is received, United Way Regina will process the application online on your behalf. You will receive an email including the license once SLGA has approved it. The license includes SLGA Terms & Conditions for you to read through and abide by. Q: Is there a maximum prize value for my 50/50 draw? A: Yes. The prize value of 50/50 s can be no more than $2500 per license. There can be multiple draws on one license, but the overall prize value cannot exceed $2500. Q: Do I need a license for each raffle I hold? A: Yes. SLGA requires that each raffle must have a separate license. Note that the total value of tickets printed and offered for sale for your raffle cannot exceed 12 times the retail value of all prizes to be awarded. Example: Prize value: $150 $150*12=$1800 Gross ticket sales: $1800 7

Q: What do I do once the lottery or raffle is completed? A: Once the lottery or raffle is complete, contact your Relationship Manager or Loaned Rep to pick up the funds raised. You and your United Way representative will complete the financial report together at the time of pickup. United Way Regina will then submit that report to SLGA on your behalf. If you have further questions, please contact: Campaign@unitedwayregina.ca or call the office at 306-751-4750 ext.710 All Terms and Conditions are established by SLGA and apply to all licenses issued pursuant to section 207 of the Criminal Code. Everyone is encouraged to visit the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority https://www.slga.gov.sk.ca to review the legal requirements. 8

SPECIAL EVENT IDEAS Let The Games Begin! Baby Picture Match Game Effort Required: Low Invite employees to try their luck matching baby pictures with pictures of management. Award the winning entry with a prize or fun incentive. Dress Down Stickers Effort Required: High Casual Days are very simple to run. Get permission from management to hold Casual Days every Friday throughout your employee campaign. Charge employees $X to dress casually on the designated day, days, week, etc. Contact your United Way Rep to get Dress Down Stickers for participants to wear to show they are dressed this way for United Way. Games (carnival style) to Medium Effort Required: High Set up old-fashioned carnival games such as a ring toss, fish pond and balloon dart-throw. Prior to the carnival, ask staff to donate old stuffed animals as prizes. Award these prizes to those who do well at the "games of skill". Halloween Costume Contest Cost to run event: Medium Effort Required: Low-Medium Plan a Halloween themed day, where employees in the office dress up in Halloween costumes. To mix it up, have departments compete against one another for best costume theme. Have each employee pay $5 to participate and $1 to vote. Award prizes in various categories: best effort by department, best effort by individual, most creative theme, etc. Haunted house Cost to run event: High Effort Required: High A Haunted House can be a fun way to get in the Halloween spirit. Have the office board room turned into a Haunted House and have employees pay $X to go through. Another way to involve staff is to have different departments compete for best Haunted House, and award the winning team with a prize. Each department would pay an entrance fee to compete. Hawaiian Luau Cost to run event: High Effort Required: Medium Hold a mini luau for an employee giving meeting. Serve ham, pineapple upsidedown cake and other Hawaiian fare. Give prizes to employees wearing the most outrageous Hawaiian attire. Mini Putt Effort Required: Low-Medium Advertise in advance for foursomes to enter (BYOP- Bring your own Putter) and charge a flat fee for entry. Set up the min-putt game throughout the hallways, offices, elevators, etc. Be creative and construct water traps (buckets) and sand traps (popcorn). The lowest scored wins. To reduce costs, solicit prize donations from contacts and suppliers. 9

Office Olympics Effort Required: Low-Medium Arrange teams for an Office Olympics. Ideas for events include races, Olympic trivia, rubber band archery, and balloon tennis. Pie toss Effort Required: Medium Recruit management to help you with this carnival classic. Give employees the opportunity to toss whipped cream pies or damp sponges at willing volunteers for a dollar or two. Make sure that targets wear garbage bags to protect their clothes Races Effort Required: Medium Races can be a fun way to raise money and promote team building. There are many different types of races that can be held, including the following: - Relay races - Pentathlon - Etc. Scavenger hunt Effort Required: Low-Medium Hold an office scavenger hunt. Split into teams (perhaps by department) and have employees search for a few items during the lunch hour. Award a prize to the winner. Team members pay $10 per person to participate as a donation to United Way. Survivor Cost to run event: Medium Effort Required: Medium Create teams to compete throughout your campaign for prizes. Hold challenges each day where groups compete mentally or physically for prizes such as bottles of wine, baked goods or raffle tickets. Team members pay $10 per person to participate as a donation to United Way. Suggestions for challenges include: United Way quiz, office mini-putt game, Canadian trivia game, scavenger hunt. Regina Public School Board Comedy Night Who wants to be a millionaire? Effort Required: Medium This event is based on the television game show. This is a great way to increase United Way knowledge among staff. Instead of Who wants to be a Millionaire? you could play Wheel of Fortune, Trivial Pursuit or Jeopardy. Selfie Challenge Effort Required: Low Take a selfie of you and your team looking good by doing good to participate. Encourage staff to selfie themselves doing good for the community in fun ways. Share on social media with a relevant hashtag (i.e.: #companyunited4community) For every $10 pledge 1 entry can be submitted to win prizes. Post to your intranet and vote for a winner! 10

Feeling Lucky Auctions Effort Required: Medium-High Ask employees to donate an item to be auctioned off. Be sure to advertise your auction well in advance. Auction ideas: - Parking spot - Favours - Baked goods - Etc. Loonie 50/50 draw Effort Required: Low Stick double-sided tape to the floor in a hightraffic area. Have volunteers encourage passerbys to stick a Loonie to the tape. Award each participant with a draw ticket for each loonie they place on the tape. At the end of the day, draw a winner. Then, award 50% of the loonies to the winner and donate the remainder to the United Way campaign. Raffle Tickets to High Effort Required: Low to High If you choose to hold a raffle, remember to obtain the appropriate license. This could take six to eight weeks, so plan accordingly. Solicit managers and suppliers for donations, such as a day off with pay or a gift certificate. Advertise in advance with posters, memos and bulletins and position ticket booths in key areas. You may want to hold weekly draws throughout your campaign. Rather than giving out prizes throughout the campaign, many organizations award raffle tickets instead. These raffle tickets can then be used to enter draws for grand prizes. These prizes can be donated by staff or an outside source. Taste of Success BBQ Cost to run event: High Effort Required: High To make your barbeque successful, advertise the items that will be served and sell tickets well in advance so that you can determine how many hamburgers (or hot dogs, steaks, etc.) you will need. It is important to offer a vegetarian alternative. Try to purchase your meat at a reduced cost based on volume. If you are feeding a large number of people, have four or five gas barbeques. Encourage management to cook the hamburgers (or hot dogs, steaks, etc.) Don't forget the condiments! Candy grams Effort Required: Low It doesn't take much time to organize a candy-grams fundraiser, but it can end up raising a lot of money. Sell candy grams to employees for a quarter or two and deliver them on the last day of your campaign. Try to pick a treat that relates to your campaign. For example, you could use Halloween candies if there is a Halloween theme. Bulk stores sell a wide variety of shaped gummy treats. 11

Cookbook Cost to run event: High Effort Required: High Collect employee recipes and helpful household hints into a customized cookbook. Ask children of employees to create illustrations for the cookbook, including the cover. Print or copy and bind books and charge $5 for each copy. This event has been so popular that some organizations have not been able to fill all requests. There is a high return on this if your services are donated. Plan for an enthusiastic response! Food Proceeds Effort Required: Low If your workplace has a cafeteria, ask if you a percentage of all sales over the course of your campaign or X amount of time can go towards your special events total. This is a good way to increase awareness. Ice cream social Cost to run event: Medium Effort Required: Medium Offer employees the opportunity to build their own sundae. Have a selection of ice cream available as well as different types of toppings. Make sure that there are plenty of volunteers to supervise, assist and clean up. Solvera Solutions Chili Cook-Off Cook-Off Effort Required: Medium-High Have employees collect pledges or pay a fee to participate in the Cook-Off. This is a good event to hold over a lunch hour, as you can have other employees pay to be a judge and taste the food. Some examples include, best cupcakes, best pasta, best cinnamon buns, etc. Coffee cart Cost to run event: Medium Effort Required: Medium Arrange for volunteers to bring a coffee and snack cart throughout the office one day. You should advertise in advance. Solicit donations of coffee and snacks from suppliers or ask co-workers to contribute baked goods. If you do have to purchase items, make sure you sell them at a profit. While selling coffee and snacks, distribute United Way of Regina campaign information to employees. Pancake breakfast Cost to run event: High Effort Required: High Pancake breakfasts have become popular with United Way campaigns as a venue to announce the employee campaign goal. Many campaigns have senior management cook and serve the pancakes to staff. To reduce costs, negotiate with your cafeteria or a wholesale distributor for a donation or discount of supplies. Advertise well in advance with posters, letters and flyers to create awareness in both your organization and the Potluck Lunch Effort Required: Low Hold a potluck luncheon one day during your campaign. Ask each staff member to contribute a dish. Have each person sign up ahead of time to ensure a mix of salads/starters, main courses, drinks and desserts. You may want to give your potluck a multicultural twist by requesting dishes from all over the world. Have employees pay $10- $15 to participate. 12

Special Event Ideas WRAPPING UP YOUR SPECIAL EVENT After the fun is over, do not forget to follow the steps below to ensure you have properly closed your special event. 1. Organize money raised- Keep the money you raise organized by ensuring you follow the below guidelines: Record dollars raised from each special event you hold on the Special Events Form found on page 17. If you hold multiple special events, you do not need to keep the funds raised from each event separate. Please compile all funds raised. If possible, please roll your coins collected from your special event either using proper coin rollers from a bank or purchased from a store. 2. Complete your special events form- See Page 17 for your special events form. If you have any questions while completing your form, please seek assistance from your United Way Regina Representative. 3. Contact your United Way Regina Representative to arrange for the drop-off or pickup of your special event donation, special events form and other materials. Thank You! Government of Saskatchewan Run 13

Special Events Checklist Appendix A GENERAL Selection of suitable event(s) Compliance with policy for department/organization Consensus from full Campaign Team Appointment of event coordinator DATE Date of event Is date set far enough ahead? Is the date suitable for this particular event? Are there any other significant events on same day/at same time? Are senior management and/or special guests available? Can a gaming license be obtained between now and the planned date, if required? VENUE Location On-site contact person Is any permit, license or special licensing required? Is parking required? Is parking available? Is there wheelchair access? Are there any washrooms at the venue or nearby? Can the venue accommodate the expected crowd? Are there other factors: weather, religious observances, etc? If unknown venue, is a map necessary for participants? Have technical requirements been reviewed by the on-site contact? Can venue be decorated with posters, banners, etc? Are there any security factors to consider? Does the venue provide clean-up service? At what price? 14

TIME & SCENARIO OF THE EVENT Beginning of event End of event On-site event coordinator Has coordinator assigned tasks to team members? Is a detailed minute-by-minute script needed? Are all speakers lined-up and confirmed? Are biographical notes required for each guest speaker? Have spellings, pronunciations and titles of guests been confirmed? Are documents distributed? Are printed tickets required? WRAP-UP Is a clean-up squad in place? Can we re-use posters, signs, etc? Is there a debriefing session planned? Has the event coordinator compiled a list of volunteers? Is there some recognition for volunteers been planned? (Certificates, reception, lunch, etc.) 15

Appendix B Special Event Planner Event Name: Co-ordinator: Date: Time: Location: Event Object(s): Fundraising Awareness/Education Morale Additional Event Details: Resources Required: (# of volunteers, total volunteer hours, equipment & supplies, refreshments) Budget: Item Cost TOTAL $ $ $ $ $ 16

Results $ Dollars raised (if applicable) $ Event Expenses (if applicable) $ Net Result # of Participants: # of Volunteers: Total Volunteer Time: Comments & recommendations for next year s event 17

2018 Special Events Form Improving Lives Locally Organization Financial Report submitted to SLGA Event $ Event $ Event $ Event $ Event $ License # License # License # License # License # TOTAL $ Method of Payment Cash $ Cheque Enclosed $ *** SLGA required Small Raffle Financial Report must also be completed at time of envelope pick-up if a Lottery license is used. Signature: (Employee Campaign Co-ordinator) Date: Thank you! No tax receipts will be issued for money raised through special events. Charitable Registration # 11927 8372 RR0001 18