TWO DAYS LEFT…Starry Night Prom Fundraiser on Facebook

We are in the last two days of this Facebook Fundraiser for Starry Night Prom 2018 which started on #GivingTuesday!  You wonderful supporters kicked us off right and we are currently at $889.  That is awesome.

So, it just dawned on that I never did post the history of Starry Night Prom.  My apologies. It’s just been a very busy month.  Here is the story in brief:

The Starry Night Prom started in 2008 with a vision to create a once-in-a-lifetime prom experience for Arlington ISD high school students with significant disabilities.  Taking the vision from AISD special education teacher Sara Mayo, Chase Christenson developed his Eagle Scout project around creating the Starry Night Prom, along with Boy Scout Troop #396 and the Arlington Elks Lodge #2114.  Now an annual even, the Starry Night Prom is heading into its eleventh year of throwing an all-inclusive prom!  Students with significant disabilities and their chaperone are treated to beautiful invitations to attend prom, a sit-down dinner, professional photography, corsages and boutonnieres, dessert fountain, a prom king and queen, goodie bags, and, of course, a huge dance floor with a DJ, all at  no cost to the student or their chaperone!

Starry Night Prom is a recognized 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization.  All donations are tax-deductible.

Please consider donating to this Facebook Fundraiser for Starry Night Prom.  You can still donate on this platform through 11:59 p.m. on Saturday, 12/09/2017.  Every donation is greatly appreciated.

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A Starry Night Setback

I was saddened just now to read on our Starry Night Prom fundraiser page the following message from #GivingTuesday:

” #GivingTuesday Match Report

On Nov 28, we raised $45 million for causes around the world. Unfortunately, your fundraiser didn’t receive a match this year, but from all of us at Facebook, thank you for being part of our fundraising community.”

We were really hoping that the matching would kick start our fundraising efforts to alleviate the usual last minute scramble that we do each year.  But that didn’t happen.

The good news is, I am an optimist.  This is part of the uniform we Vice-Presidents of Donations wear.  And so, I will polish my Donations Star, put it back on my chest, and continue to raise money for this truly amazing cause for an even more amazing group of kids.  Our silver lining is that we have raised $869, so far, toward the 2018 Starry Night Prom.  And that is $869 that we did not have on Cyber Monday.

That said, good donors and potential donors, we still have until December 5, 2017 to raise more money for this fundraiser.  Please give.  We truly appreciate your support.  Please share these posts, even if you have already donated or are not in a position to do so at this time.  Perhaps someone on your friends list will be able.  Thank you.

Starry Night Prom 2018 Is STILL Accepting Donations via Facebook

Are you upset that you missed the #GivingTuesday donation day for Starry Night Prom?  Don’t be!  Our Facebook Fundraiser is still open and will remain open through December 5, 2017.   While the matching of donations is no longer available, you can still donate by clicking on THIS LINK RIGHT HERE to donate via the Network for Good on Facebook.  It is easy, fast, and secure and you receive a receipt for printout.  Starry Night Prom is a registered 501 (c) (3) Non-Profit Organization.  So every donation to us is tax-deductible and 100% appreciated.

Did you know that we have been hosting this all-expenses paid prom for special needs high school students in the Arlington ISD for going on ELEVEN YEARS?  Yup.  It’s true. And we have always had the support of individuals like you in the community and now across the U.S. and even other countries in the world to help us.  Thanks to monetary donations and in-kind donations from individual donors, small businesses, and corporate sponsors, we are able to continue our Starry Night Prom tradition each year.

Won’t you please consider donating to this amazing campaign and help make prom  night for these kids a magical event?  Click on the link above to help us meet our goal.

Thanks.

 

Set Your Alarms for 8 O’Clock Tuesday Morning, Y’all

We are so excited! Tomorrow is #GivingTuesday.  We are so stoked to be participating in the fundraising again this year.  You know what is so cool about giving on the 28th of November, though?  Facebook AND the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will be matching all nonprofits donations after 8 a.m. on Tuesday, 28 November 2017, up to $50,000 until 11:59 p.m.!  Yes, that’s right.  That means that if you donate $20 to us tomorrow, Starry Night Prom will receive $60.  Isn’t that the coolest?!

So, please, anytime after 8 a.m. EST tomorrow, please click on THIS SECURE FUNDRAISER LINK and donate whatever you feel comfortable giving to help our cause, and those funds will be matched.  We appreciate your help.  Your generous donations are how we are able to provide an all expenses paid prom for the Arlington ISD high school students with significant disabilities each year.

Starry Night Prom is a registered 501 (c)(3) Non-Profit Organization.

Starry Night Prom 2018 Fundraiser Kickoff!

Starry Night Prom is about to kick off its 2018 Fundraising efforts by participating in the #GivingTuesday fundraiser.  We have updated our own fundraiser on the YouCaring website and we’ve set up our #GivingTuesday fundraiser on Facebook. And guess what!  Once again, Facebook is waiving their usual fees for all donations made from 12:00am EST on November 28, 2017 to 11:59pm HST on November 28, 2017.  Isn’t that awesome?  But wait!  That’s not all!

On #GivingTuesday, Facebook and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will be matching up to $2 million of funds raised on Facebook for US nonprofits.  For more information about the matching, please click RIGHT HERE TO THE GivingTuesday Information on Facebook.   

Please donate to this magical cause and level the social playing field for some of Arlington’s most amazing students.  Support the Starry Night Prom! Thank you.

 

 

 

The Little Prom That Could

So, WOW! The amazing response to our last plea for donations has just been incredible.  YOU are incredible. The fact that you are reading these updates and posts and sharing them is incredible. And OH so incredibly appreciated.

THIS is what has happened in the last 24 hours:  We jumped from nearing half our goal to being only $165 from reaching our ENTIRE GOAL!
Click HERE ——–> TO DONATE NOW!
YES!!!! This Starry Night Prom is going to be the best ever and it’s all thanks to you awesome people and your generous donations. Prom is still 4 days away, so here’s the thing. We’re not going to stop collecting money.  We will continue to collect and leave the fundraiser open until the evening of our 10th annual Starry Night Prom, and whatever we have left we’re going to use for next year’s prom. Oh, yes. We are again inspired to keep this thing going.

If you would like to be a part of this awesome program, please email us and let us know. We need new blood. Our board members have been doing this gig for many years and our kids have aged out of the program. We’d like to be able to train the next generation of parents in how to get the funds collected and the in-kind donations. We are ready to
pass the torch to committee members who are ready to top our 10th annual Starry Night Prom. So if you’re ready to be on the 2018 Starry Night Prom executive board, then please send us your name, email address, cell phone number, name of the AISD high school that your student attends (or that you work at), and we will be in touch.

Thank you so much for your support. And keep sharing these updates. We are the little prom that could….help keep us chugging.

 

STARRY NIGHT PROM 2017

This kid right here? He’s having a blast, dancing his heart out at the Starry Night Prom last year.

2017 will mark our TENTH ANNUAL STARRY NIGHT PROM! Can you believe we’ve been doing this for an entire decade? We decided to celebrate that fact by throwing an even better prom this year than we did last year. But in order to do that, we need your help. This prom is run entirely on donations. Yes, that’s right. The invitations, corsages and boutonnieres, decorations, food, DJ, desserts, photography, commemorative t-shirts, swag bags and everything in them: ALL donated or paid for with your donations. Even the people who provide service on this night- all volunteers.

And throwing an event like STARRY NIGHT PROM each year is not cheap. So we’re calling on you to help us out. Please donate to help us reach our $6000 goal and make this magical night a reality for these kids within the Arlington ISD. Just click on the highlighted link below and you’ll be directed to our crowd-sourcing fundraiser site.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO STARRY NIGHT PROM 2017!

If you own a business and would like to donate logo-bearing in-kind donation for swag bags, please contact our Vice-President of Donations by emailing her here: starrynightprom@outlook.com

If you have other in-kind donations that you’d like to donate, such as gently used prom dresses or tuxedoes, or if you’d like to purchase and donate food items or gift cards to local grocery or department stores, swagbag items, etc., also please contact our Vice-President of Donations via email: starrynightprom@outlook.com.

Remember EVERY donation is appreciated and we will provide  you with a tax-deductible receipt.

**STARRY NIGHT PROM is a registered 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization.

Starry Night Prom Fundraiser in Progress

So, what’s it been? About 12 minutes since I wrote about Starry Night Prom? I can’t help it. These kids are so stinkin’ precious and seeing them celebrating their prom in a safe and accepting environment is just a truly moving experience.

We are currently in the middle of a Facebook fundraising drive. What’s awesome about this one is that Facebook has waived all of the usual fees they collect during their #GivingTuesday campaign. This means that 100% of all donations contributed through the Facebook fundraiser through 15 December 2016 will go directly to Starry Night Prom. And since Starry Night Prom is completely run on the generosity of others, this is HUGE.

As some of you are not already aware, I’ll explain a little about Starry Night Prom. We are a registered 501-C3 nonprofit organization serving Arlington ISD high school students with significant disabilities. We host an annual prom for these kids and a chaperone and all of it is paid for 100% with donations. So their invitations, corsages and boutonnieres, photographs, food, deejay, and goodie bags complete with commemorative t-shirt (sponsors printed on back) are all FREE. A lot of these kids would have to miss out on their high school prom. There’s usually not a lot of accommodations for those who have feeding tubes, oxygen tanks, wheelchairs, or need for assistance in the bathroom, etc. Starry Night Prom takes all of that kind of stuff and makes it the norm. The social playing field is leveled and everyone is “at home” in their gorgeous ball gowns and tuxedos. Spring 2017 will be our tenth year hosting Starry Night Prom.

Won’t you consider making your #GivingTuesday contribution to Starry Night Prom? Please follow this link for our Facebook Fundraising Campaign———–> CLICK HERE

And if you don’t have a Facebook account or would prefer to donate through a different site, you could follow this link for our YouCaring.com account* by clicking –> HERE. (*Donations to the YouCaring site will have transaction fees added by YouCaring, but will remain open through May 2017.)

Thank you so much for your sponsorship. We also accept In-Kind donations, so please drop me a line in the comments section and I can provide information on how to sponsor us in this way. And for those of you who are in Texas and Louisiana, you can link your Kroger Plus shopping card to Starry Night Prom under their Community Rewards program, so that Kroger will donate to Starry Night Prom with every swipe!

(ALL donations, big and small, money and in-kind, are GREATLY appreciated and tax-deductible.)

Kroger Plus Card Swipes for Starry Night Prom

Are you one of those people who truly LOVES inspirational stories and programs and organizations that want to help all of the people with all of the things but you just don’t want to buy anymore cookie dough or wrapping paper or write anymore checks?! Yeah. I’m one of those, too.
So how can you help support STARRY NIGHT PROM and stay true to your Introverted tendencies? It’s easy. Go grocery shopping.

WHAT?!?

Yes. You read that right. GO GROCERY SHOPPING. But not just anywhere. Go to KROGER.

Here are the exact directions as outlined in the email we received from Kroger:

Kroger Community Rewards – Customer Instructions

A Digital Account is needed in order to participate in Kroger Community Rewards. If you already have a Digital Account, then please skip to the section named ‘Selecting an Organization’.

 

How to Register a Digital Account

Creating a digital account is as simple as 1,2,3! Simply visit www.kroger.com or download the Kroger mobile application from the appropriate app store for your device and follow these directions.

1.      Select the ‘Register’ button.

2.      Enter your information.

3.      Select ‘Create Account’.

Please make sure that you add your card number or create a virtual card number while registering your Digital Account. This is required for the Community Rewards program so that your transactions apply towards the program.

 

Selecting an Organization

Selecting the organization that you wish to support is as simple updating the Community Rewards selection on your Digital Account.

·        Sign into your Digital Account (if you haven’t already).

·        Select ‘My Account’.

·        Scroll down to the ‘Community Rewards’ section of your account page.

·        Select ‘Enroll Now’ or ‘Edit’.

·        Enter the name or NPO number of the organization that you wish to support.
***STARRY NIGHT PROM’S NPO number is 75547****

·        Select the appropriate organization from the list and click on ‘Save’.

Your selected organization will now display in the Community Rewards section of your account page.

Any transactions moving forward using the card number associated with your digital account will be applied to the program.

It takes approximately 10 days for the Community Rewards total to begin displaying on your receipt.

 

Again, Starry Night Prom’s NPO number is 75547.

Please help support Starry Night Prom and select STARRY NIGHT PROM (NPO number 75547) from the Community Rewards section at Kroger.com today. Thank you.

**Only valid in Kroger stores in Texas and Louisiana.
***Photograph credit: Amber Inman Photography. Property of Starry Night Prom, Inc, Used with Permission