COVID-19: Fundraising while Social Distancing 101

COVID-19 continues to affect all of us in both small and big ways. During these times of uncertainty and isolation, we have seen communities get creative in staying connected and responding to the crisis, both locally and globally. From watching terrible movies to social media challenges, there are endless ways to get creative and help support the response to the COVID-19 outbreak. 

UNICEF Canada's UBC Campus Club has been using time spent at home to raise awareness and funds for the work UNICEF is doing for COVID-19. We sat down with them to find out more about how they're practicing safe social distancing,  but working to impact positive change at the same time.

1. How you have been staying connected with your community and club during this time?

UBC has been great at connecting and informing their students about changes and updates with respect to what is left of the academic year. While this has prevented us from running fundraising events in person, we decided to host an online fundraiser. Our UBC UNICEF club has continued to have virtual meetings every week through Zoom video calls. We have been using this time to plan our online fundraiser and start organizing ourselves for next semester.  

2. What motivated you to start a virtual fundraiser for Covid-19? 

We were driven by our passion to support people in need during this difficult time. We recognize the dire need for masks and other healthcare supplies that are essential to keeping people safe. Knowing that UNICEF has been working hard on the frontlines across the globe, we want to do our part here and use our resources to provide support. We believe that when communities gather together, the ability to effect change is also greater.

3. Can you share with us ore about your virtual fundraiser?

Inspired by those working to stop the spread of COVID-19, both locally and globally, we wanted to use our platform to honour them as our heroes. This is how we came up with our #MyHero Challenge. The #MyHero Challenge aims to show our appreciation and honour our very own heroes, while collecting donations that support UNICEF’s COVID-19 efforts.

How does it work? Donate to our COVID-19 Fundraiser and upload a picture of your hero on social media with the following: “I donated”, hashtag #MyHero, tag @unicefubc and nominate 3 people.

4. Do you have a message for other Canadians who would like to support UNICEF’s work at this time?

Although it is a challenging time for all of us in various ways, we believe it is more important than ever to come together and support one another. Even if you are not able to donate at this time, sharing our fundraiser is extremely helpful to further our message and collect as much funds as possible. We also encourage you to start your own fundraiser, right from home! As many of us are looking for new hobbies and activities to stay entertained, we challenge you to do something that helps our current crisis. Get creative, have fun and engage your networks!

Consider hosting your own virtual fundraiser to support UNICEF’s work in combatting COVID-19. Create your page here and invite your networks to help support. For any fundraising questions or tips and tricks, please email joh@unicef.ca.