My child is currently involved with volunteering at a program that mentors Autistic children. She is really attached to the program and she wants to do more in the community relating to kids with special needs. She also has a lot of fundraising ideas and she is also currently looking for a child with special needs who needs financial help to fund for. Either that, or she will fund for special needs programs in school districts near her that need financial support or resources. However, our question is: What type of group should she form to carry out her fundraisers? Should she try to form a small community service group or a school club? Also, if this fundraising doesn’t work out, how else can she delve deeper into helping the special needs community besides just being an ordinary volunteer once a week?
It would be a lot easier for her to fund raise through an already established group that has a 501©(3) designation. For her to get would, if she even can being underage, would be very difficult. It takes a lot of time, she’d have to file taxes for the organization, she’d have to have bank accounts and board meetings (formal or informal) to disburse the money she raises.
I’d recommend she ask the group she’s currently volunteering for if they’d let her act under its authorizations. The school requirements for fundraising and disbursing money might be even more strict than getting the federal 501©(3). We had one mother who collected money (not fundraising) for team meals and she had to fill out all kinds of paperwork just to collect $7 and then spend $7 on a sandwich.