Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Raise Money for CROP Walk Online



You can become an "E-Walker".


If you have email, you've got a new way to raise funds for the Columbus CROP Hunger Walk by using our online donation tools. So far to date, the Columbus CROP Hunger Walk has raised $580.00 online to help end poverty and hunger here at home and around the world.


Thanks to the wonders of the worldwide web, every CROP Walker can:


Create a personalized web page to accept donations and invite friends to join them


Email requests for donations to friends and family anywhere


Receive credit card contributions for their CROP Hunger Walk at our secure site


Use the web to raise funds to combat hunger and poverty at home and around the world


Even who can't walk on CROP Walk Day can still Walk on the Web to help the Columbus CROP Hunger Walk reach their goals.

Walkers and groups that use Walking on the Web as a way to raise money see an increase of 25% in their donations. That is amazing!

Go to http://www.cropwalkonline.org/ to Walk on the Web and help the Columbus CROP Hunger Walk reach our goals.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Fall CROP Hunger Walks Begin


NEW YORK--Humanitarian agency Church World Service today announced the opening of its 2008-2009 CROP Hunger Walk season, during which hunger activists in some 2,000 communities across the nation will begin walking to raise money for the agency's domestic and global anti-hunger programs.


"As the United States and the world come to grips with a food crisis that has seen supplies dwindle and prices skyrocket, more people than ever are finding it difficult to impossible to feed their families, and CROP Hunger Walk (http://www.cropwalk.org/) are more important than ever," says CWS Executive Director John L. McCullough.


According to U.S. and international reports, more than 862 million people in the world go hungry. In the United States, one in 10 households--including 11.7 million children--sometimes do not have enough food for regular meals and in developing countries 60 percent of the preventable childhood deaths are from hunger and malnutrition.


Many factors contribute to hunger in the United States and around the world, including a global food crisis fueled by rising food prices, lower crop yields as a result of climate change, unemployment and poverty.


CROP Hunger Walks--Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty--are unique in that proceeds help to overcome hunger and poverty both domestically and internationally. Internationally, the funds are used to support CWS empowerment programs that bring seeds and tools, wells and water systems, training, and micro-enterprise programs to people struggling to feed their families, develop their communities, and rise out of poverty.


In the U.S. this year, CROP Hunger Walks will share more than $3.7 million with food banks, pantries and community gardens. This support for local efforts is made possible when CROP Hunger Walks opt to return up to 25 percent of their CROP Walk proceeds to hunger-fighting programs in their own community.


The December 2007 hunger survey of 22 cities by the U.S. Conference of Mayors (http://usmayors.org/HHSurvey2007/hhsurvey07.pdf) reports that many cities are unable to meet local demand for emergency food assistance and that they expect the demand to increase in 2008.


"The hungry people left in the wake of rising food prices, unemployment, and poverty desperately need people like the hunger activists who participate in Church World Service CROP Hunger Walks. These are the people--from local churches, mosques and temples--who are helping us provide emergency food even as we look for lasting solutions to the underlying causes of hunger and poverty," says McCullough.

Church World Service is a global humanitarian agency working through an international network of secular and faith organizations to help struggling people lift themselves out of poverty with sustainable development programs, disaster relief, refugee assistance and social justice advocacy.

New Walking Route has Scenic Views






A recent survey in Columbus Alive listed the Lower Scioto Trail as the walking route with the best views of the downtown skyline.


Join the 30th Annual Columbus CROP Hunger Walk on Sunday, October 12, 2008 and check out the views of the skyline for yourself.


See you and your group on CROP Walk Day.

How to Be a Successful Recruiter








2008 CROP Walk Goals


100 Churches, 1,000 Walkers and $100,000 to help end hunger here at home and around the world

You can help us reach these goals!


Keys to CROP Hunger Walk Success

• Set goals to increase the amount of walkers from your church. The goal of the Columbus CROP Walk is to have 1,000 walkers this year. We can reach that goal with your help!

• Publicize your goal with your congregation. Encourage them to support the CROP Hunger Walk by walking and/or donating to help end hunger.

• Get your leaders and clergy involved. Ask them to promote the CROP Hunger Walk from the pulpit. Ask them to walk with your church.

• Set up and staff a CROP Walk table at your church to recruit walkers. Make a colorful sign of everyone who is walking. Collect donations at the table. See if you can have a CROP Walk Collection the day of the walk.

· Encourage all of your walkers to “Walk Green” by using Walking on the Web. Churches that use Walking on the Web see a 25% increase in their
donations.

Key CROP Walk Recruiting Pieces

You’ve received Key Recruiting Promotional Materials to assist in your
recruiting goals. Here is a handy guide on how to use these materials.

Use the red brochure the first week that you recruit in church. Each church bulletin should have a red brochure. They help to answer the questions: “What is a CROP Walk and why should I walk?”

Use this promotional flier the second week that you advertise. Each church bulletin should receive this flier. It has great information on how together we make a difference by CROP Hunger Walking.

The Donation Envelope is given to each CROP Walker for recording their sponsors and collecting their donations.

Give a Walking on the Web brochure an to each walker. Web Walkers will see a 25% increase in their donations.

A colorful, eye-catching poster to help promote your CROP Hunger Walk, with room at the bottom for you to write information.

Peel-off CROP stickers allows you to get your entire congregation involved. If someone gives a walker a donation, the walker can give the donor a sticker for participating. Some people like to see how many stickers they can collect.