Coffee morning

[doreenharwood]

Hi is anyone doing the Macmillan coffee morning next Friday 28th. I spoke to my boss about it and he has agree to do one in the restaurant next friday morning before we open. The staff are all making cakes and I have donated raffle prizes. We have been giving out leaflets so Im hoping we will raise a few pounds. I will post the results next week. Love and hugs to everyone Babs x x

[Hidden]

Lovely Idea Babs well done love x G x

[Hidden]

I'm not holding one but my daughter who works in the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff is organizing one for the 3rd year. I will be going to one and making cakes for it at the salon where I have my pedicure. Could something like this be organized for OC awareness month in March? Then the funds would go directly to Ovacome xx

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

You're right March is ovarian cancer awareness month...but not "OvaCome" awareness month... it is a month to raise the profile of Ovarian cancer and there are a few other charities that do this as well..if you want to raise money for "OvaCome" you will need to be more specific...otherwise it will be dispersed with the other charities as well...love x G x

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

That's a fair point and would have to be made clear at anything that was arranged. Ovarian Cancer profile certainly needs to be raised as there are so few people know anything about it (including myself) until it raises it's ugly head xx

[Whippit in reply to Hidden]

Yes, a point well made, and for us in Wales there is another challenge. Marie Curie, a juggernaut of a charity - and a very worthy one - has strong links to the Welsh identity. MC's symbol is the yellow daffodil and they have a massive and very successful fund-raising campaign in Wales selling their daffodil badges in the weeks leading up to St David's Day on 1 March. It's good they're raising funds but it's still a bit of a blow to the start of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month for us and I'm still scratching my head and pondering about this one.

If you do have ideas about fundraising it might be worth talking to Ruth Grigg who's done a lot of this sort of work - just to gain the benefit of her experience.

I LOVE the idea of your cafe opening early in aid of Macmillan Babs. You must have a very altruistic boss! Good luck with the coffee morning. I'm looking forward to hearing how it goes. xxx

[Hidden in reply to Whippit]

Hi Annie,

After I had cancer the place where I worked, started to be more aware of cancer,so started selling sweets in aid of "Marie Curie" also they did fundraising for breast cancer too, and got me to make "Pink Roman Soldier Tunics" and wore them for a day or two not only raise money but raise awareness for breast cancer they looked so funny strapping men wearing bright pink under their armour ...and I was pleased that I might have started something but couldn't help feeling a "pang" wishing they were "Teal" and for "Ovarian Cancer" instead.. but I will be honest and say... if they had gone out on the streets with "Teal" no one would have got it.., certainly not have had the same impact either... no one wants to know ...we are the poor relatives of "Women's Cancer" and this is unlikely to change.....plus the fact that Breast cancer is not exclusive to women...I once asked an Ovarian Cancer charity why our awareness month isn't in line with the rest of the world i.e. America etc they said it was agreed because "Breast Cancer Awareness"month is November it is too much competition... so we are even out of sinc with everyone else with our awareness month... but I do concede that this is a valid point...short of chaining ourselves to the railings of parliament wearing Teal ...what else can we do? ( I am up for that) haha love x G x

[Hidden]

Hi Babs,

I'm very fed up with MacMillan over their coffee morning fund raising. In the year I was having treatment (2010), I agreed to hold an event for them. The 'phone rand constantly with their fund raisers asking questions, and lots of v expensive stuff was sent through the post. I raised a little over £100, and thought nothing of it. I then discovered 'Ovacome' and decided that I wanted to donate any further funds I attracted to them (not using Macmillan's literature, etc). I said I did not want to participate in 2011 or 2012, and still recieved stacks of expensive literature, etc. This year I sent it all back (at some expense), saying that I do not wish to participate or to be contacted. Still more has arrived this week.

I'm sorry, but as someone who has managed a charity for 3 decades, I am furious at the waste of resources and disregard this represents. I have no doubt that the charity does some very useful work - but I also have little doubt that this kind of fund raising does more to keep the fund raising contractors in work, than the charity's core activities.

You might consider splitting the proceeds you are so admirably generating between MM and Ovacome; thereby ensuring that at least some of it benefits a charity doing useful work.

Best wishes,

Isadora.

[Whippit in reply to Hidden]

Dear Isadora - how I sympathise! The juggernaut charities have the whip-edge over the smaller ones in terms of fundraising. I was so impressed when I visited the Ovacome Office. It was tiny and clearly run on a tight budget - and yet it provides a wonderful resource for us to all talk together. From where I stand at the moment it gives me more than Macmillan and Marie Curie together.

The large charities have the assurance of 3-year financial contingencies so they can apply to the massive fund-givers and attract corporate donations. It's a tough world for Ovacome and other small charities.

I hugely sympathise with how you feel about directing some money to Ovacome from the profits of the MM coffee morning but I'm not sure it's entirely a good idea. The coffee morning is their stamp. I think we should be looking at developing another event for Ovacome. It could be really small but there's great strength in putting on simultaneous events in all parts of the UK. This site gives us the opportunity to discuss what we might individually and collectively do and start something going. What do you think? xx Annie

[Whippit]

btw Isadora, I meant to ask which charity you worked for. xx

[Hidden]

I founded and ran a local service for a specific problem. Better I don't name it, but we had 14 staff and a turnover in excess of £500,000, for which I did all the non-contract fundraising.

I agree - the Macmillan coffee morning is theirs - the 'generic' coffeee morning goes back to the fifties and sixties.

I.

[wendydee]

I agree about the larger charities. I was told in a meeting, with a MM nurse present, that there was lots of money available for projects such as weekend outdoor activities for carers, I contrast that with the work that Ovacome does.............

However, when my mother-in-law was dying, the MM social worker was the only oner who understood what she and we wanted, and got things moving for the support for her to die at home with us Nd a district nurse team looking after her, so I was grateful to them for that.

Difficult, really, isn't it?

Anyway, Babs, all the best for your coffee morning. Hope you're still coping with the treatment and your recovery is going well.

Love Wendy xx