Why We Fundraise

Like any nonprofit, the Boy Scouts of America relies on fundraising to accomplish many of its goals each year.  Cub Scout fundraisers are an essential and exciting activity for pack members.  Fundraising in our pack is varied and fundraisers are chosen in hopes of enriching the scout’s experience. 

. Fundraisers helps with:

• Scout Account 

  • An individual scout account consists of unit-held funds that a scout and their family can use to pay for Scouting-related expenses. This can be extremely beneficial for paying for uniforms, dues, campouts, and more! 

• Pack Activities

Some of the Fundraisers our Scouts do:  

• Popcorn Sales

• Holiday Wreath Sales

• Brat Sales

The Benefits of Involving Children in Fundraisers

Organizing fundraisers that children can participate in and promote is a great way to encourage kids’ growth as individuals, groups, and community members. Fundraising teaches Scouts to:

• Earn money for things they need or want. The process of raising money teaches kids personal responsibility and helps them to develop a greater appreciation for the value of earned material goods. It also works to discourage entitlement and encourage hard work and diligence. Your child’s eyes might glaze over a bit if you simply tell them they need to earn things for themselves, but actually doing it as a Scout can be a motivating and rewarding experience for them.

• Use math in a real-world context. Fundraising isn’t only about selling products; it’s about understanding expenses vs. profits, adding and subtracting, and diligent bookkeeping. Even if math isn’t your child’s favorite subject, they will quickly learn how important math skills are in the real world when they participate in a fundraiser. Keeping track of money at an early age also helps to prepare them for managing checking account balances as adults.

• Practice philanthropy when they are older. When they sell products for a good cause, kids can learn to appreciate the willingness of others to help them reach their goals. As adults, they will likely be more inclined to give back to their communities in similar ways. In short, nonprofit fundraising experiences help kids to become more community-minded in general.

• Interact with new people and gain confidence. Depending on your child’s personality, the concept of (safely) selling products to people they don’t know well may seem a little intimidating at first. But when they fundraise with the Boy Scouts, they’ll have the benefit of a support network to help them gain confidence and meet their goals. Once they have a fundraiser or two under their belt, they are likely to feel more capable of taking on other life challenges.

• Work as part of a team toward a common goal. Fundraising is also a great way for children to learn to work together to accomplish something—even and especially with other children they don’t know or otherwise have much in common with. Working together helps kids take responsibility for and pride in their assigned tasks as well as the shared results. Most importantly, practicing teamwork skills prepares kids for school and work group projects as they grow up.