Around the same time that Rashford was shining a light on food poverty up and down the country, Matt was dealing with the issue of surplus stock as a result of being thrown into a second lockdown.

“We had a lot of big week sales at the start of October. When the tier 2 lockdown restrictions were announced our sales halved overnight,” he said.

After learning that many kids would need feeding over the half term period, Matt decided to put his food to good use.

“We had all this spare food. When we saw what Marcus Rashford was doing we decided to combine it,” he said.

Matt decided to put together lunch parcels for any kids who might need it in the local area using the surplus ingredients he had to hand.

The next step was to let people know that he was happy to help.

“We reached out to people we knew would be able to get the word out. I contacted my friend Tom Van-Wesseldine who helped tie everything together on the PR side of things and we were able to call on Josh Denzel from Love Island, Louise Redknapp and some social media influencers who were happy to share it on their social media and that really helped,” Matt explained.

The restaurant  also reached out to churches and community centres.

“We wanted to let people know that we were there for them and we didn’t want to waste all the food,” Matt said.

Fortunately for him, there was an abundance of people who wanted to help after they heard about his project.

“The response was amazing. So many people in the community wanted to get involved. They offered to bake and so many volunteered to deliver the food parcels.

“A lot of people were embarrassed to ask for help, so people offering to deliver to them meant that they could avoid coming to the restaurant,” said Matt.

The response was so huge, Matt ended up setting up a GoFundMe page for people who wanted to donate to the cause.

“We had so many people offering to help that eventually I decided to raise some cash so they had somewhere to put their money! We ended up raising more than  £4,000!”

The money raised allowed Matt to continue to provide meals to people in need. In the end, The Schoolhouse delivered more than 650 meals to people in the local area.

“Initially it was all about school kids, but in the end we were delivering to anyone in need who asked, we weren’t about to turn away people who were in need of food,” Matt said.

“As time went on, more people heard about what we were doing. A lot of people who received deliveries from estates had heard about it through their neighbours.

“Some people came everyday.”

Matt said he found the experience humbling.

“I knew there were people who needed help, but I didn’t realise how bad some of the conditions were that people were living in right on my doorstep.

“There is a lot of stigma attached to people who need a bit of help, but when you go and actually meet them you realise that for a lot of these people their situation was out of their control. I think people are too quick to judge.

“Doing the campaign made me think that there is actually a lot more that we can do and I am so glad we did it.”

Matt said he plans to launch another campaign to help the homeless this winter.

Here are Matt’s top fundraising tips:

Use social media

“Utilise social media as much as possible to let people know what you are doing. We found the stories feature on Instagram particularly useful to show the work that was going on. When people can see this in action it really inspires them to want to do something to help!”

Don’t be afraid to ask for help

“Don’t be shy to ask for a donation! Sometimes the natural reaction is to thank people for offering to help but you have all the volunteers that you need etc. Setting up a donation page and pushing people towards it is a great way to accept the help offered and also continue to help those in need.”

Reach out to other fundraising groups

“Reach out to groups that are often fundraising and are looking for worthy causes to back. We had a number of donations from a trade union that was looking to support initiatives such as ours and they had a number of members ready and willing to donate to causes that they backed.”

The post The restaurant that provided hundreds of meals for kids over half term appeared first on GoFundMe (IE).

With a fireman for a dad, a nurse for a grandma and a paramedic for an auntie, the girls were no strangers to key workers and saw first hand how hard they were working during the pandemic. 

Ebonae-Rose and Summer decided they wanted to help. It all started as a craft activity. The sisters found a pair of wings and decided to make a guardian angel keepsake for their dad. After that they ordered more supplies and gave one to each of their family members working on the front line to keep them safe.

“Initially the girls started it for the family, but then word got out.” Ebonae-Rose and Summer’s mum Tracey said. 

After Tracey posted some images of what the girls were up to on Facebook, the sisters started getting requests from other key workers so they made more.

“We decided to start sending them out. It went viral , everyone wanted them. We were googling addresses and sending them to frontline workers.The girls couldn’t keep up with the demand!” Tracey said.

The guardian angels were a big hit amongst key workers.

“Everyone was sending pictures of them wearing the angels in full PPE, so we just kept buying more supplies.” Tracey said.

After a while, Tracey and her husband realised they couldn’t keep sending out angels for as the price of production was beginning to add up.

“We were funding it ourselves. We were buying more and more and it was costing quite a lot. I couldn’t believe how much stamps cost!” Tracey said.

“We thought we would have had to stop as we wouldn’t have been able to afford it, but then my friend suggested that we set up a GoFundMe page.”

The Guardian Angels GoFundMe page was set up and donations started to pour in, it even caught the attention of the media.

“The local newspaper got in touch. I set up the facebook page and people started private messaging me and asking to donate so then people started sharing the link. The BBC asked to interviewed the girls for the Everyday Hero Award, it’s been amazing.” Tracey said.

The girls have also been nominated for a Pride of Britain award by several complete strangers.

“To even be thought of as that category was so  amazing as I know there are so many people doing incredible things.” Tracey said.

But the success of the campaign didn’t stop there. The sister’s work caught the eye of none other than the Prime Minister Boris Johnson who has given them a Points of Light award.

“We got a letter from Boris Johnson! It was so out of the blue . I got an email from a representative saying Boris had heard about what we were doing and they wanted to offer us a Points of Light award.

“I couldn’t believe it!” Said Tracey.

With all the success of the campaign Tracey said it can be difficult for the girls to manage their time.

“The girls are thrilled that they can keep sending them.They have been trying to balance crafting with school work.”

Tracey and her husband even tried to shut their page down a few times but were met by cries of outrage.

“I’ve tried shutting it twice but every time people ask to keep it open.” Said Tracey.

The couple have decided to give any excess funds that they raise to charity.

“After such an amazing response we decided to donate to local charities . The girls asked if we could share the money.”

At the moment they have donated funds to NHS Charities Together, a local animal sanctuary and Pendle Hospice.

They are also hoping to be able to donate to Friends of Serenity, a charity that supports bereaved parents. 

“We’ve been through it ourselves. They give rainbow boxes. We’ve been making rainbow guardian angels for the boxes so we want to support them too.” Said Tracey.

The family said they plan to keep the campaign going for as long as it is needed.

“We want to provide love, hope and positivity in times of worry. It lets people know that we are thinking of them.”

We asked Ebonae-Rose and Summer what their top fundraising tips were:

Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it

Have a focus, a target that’s achievable and be clear what you are asking for help with. 

Make it personal

“Make your campaign personal, fun and exciting. Keep things interesting for others to read.”

Keep your supporters updated

“Always keep your donors and supporters updated with regular updates, pictures links or press releases so that they can follow and become part of your journey too. We found social media particularly good for this because we could share as much as possible with our influencers particularly our wonderful stories and just how much the girls have achieved throughout and how they have made a difference to the lives of individuals. 

“By sharing our journey, it also gave others the chance to feel a part of what we were doing too as they could post their pictures and give their feedback on how it has impacted them.”

Thank your supporters

“Always thank all of your supporters whether they have donated or not because without them you wouldn’t have been able to achieve what you set out to do. Remember to also post updates to your campaign, keep your audience updated regarding your funds and plans.”

Share your campaign

“Last but not least share, share, share!! Just Keep sharing and let everyone know what you are doing. Let family and friends share with their supporters and so on. Make it public. Tell everyone! Tell the world, the more people know what you are doing, the more your story will be heard and the more support you will receive.

“When raising those essential funds you really do need all of the support you can get.”

The post Meet Ebonae-Rose and Summer appeared first on GoFundMe (IE).

Since moving to the village of Pinhoe in 2018, the vicar and her husband had been interested in setting up a cafe that would be for members of the community to enjoy.

“We live on the corner of the local school, which my kids attend as well, and I noticed that when parents are dropping and picking up their kids they would stand on the corner chatting. I realised they had nowhere to go.

“We also noticed a lot of people were struggling financially in the area and I wanted to provide somewhere for people to get a coffee without worrying about cost.” The Reverend said.

At the beginning of the year Reverend Slater was ready to make her plan a reality, but then lockdown hit.

“When lockdown started it became clear that having a place indoors wouldn’t work, so it was my husband actually who suggested the horse box.

“We got the idea after going to the Devon County Show where we saw people using their horse boxes to provide coffee and teas to the attendees, ” she said.

The reverend decided to set up a GoFundMe campaign to raise the necessary funds to purchase the horse box and to transform it into a cafe.

They immediately received support from their local community and donations started to trickle in, but then something amazing happened.

“After I set up the campaign, a friend saw it and decided that she wanted to help and bought the box outright, which was incredible!” The vicar said.

The couple were able to set up their cafe at the bottom of their drive opposite the local school.They called it The Horsebox.

The cafe is not for profit and asks people to pay what they can afford.

“Offering good generous hospitality is what church should be about. So I wanted to continue that.

“I love going for coffee. It’s such a lovely experience and I hated the idea that people were denied it,” said the reverend.

Any money the cafe does receive from its guests goes straight back into its upkeep. The couple have their eye on creating a permanent outdoor space where people can sit and catch up. They also want a coffee machine.

“I really want a cappuccino machine” revealed the Reverend. “It’s difficult to decide which one should take precedence.”

To encourage more people to donate to the campaign, the Reverend and her family decided to take on a challenge of rowing the length of the rivers Exe, Otter, Clyst and Dart. Although, the vicar says she has been doing most of the heavy lifting in that department.

“Two of the four rivers are complete. There are four of us in this family and I am the one doing most of the rowing!”

Currently they are open every Friday 8.45 am to 11am for the school run, but the vicar hopes to extend the hours once lockdown eases.

“We’ve had a great response. Word got out on the community facebook pages. Word of mouth spread and we’ve had such strong support. We keep seeing more and more people show up each week.” The vicar said.

“I want to keep it open forever, well for at least as long as I live in Devon!”

We asked the Reverend what her top GoFundMe crowdfunding tips were:

Choose a trusted platform

 “Choose a platform that people trust. GoFundMe is a credible name that people were happy to donate to.”

Spread the word

“The GoFundMe has been brilliantly easy to set up. I don’t know how we would have done it without it. It was so easy to spread the word on Facebook because of the share buttons on the site. We also flagged it to the church magazine.”

Set yourself a challenge

“We wanted to do something to encourage people to donate, that’s where the rowing the rivers idea came from.”

The post Meet Reverend Wiz Slater appeared first on GoFundMe (IE).

Simon, Austen’s dad, explained that it was harder for him to find work because he was autistic. He said this was due to societal stigmas surrounding the disability.

Being autistic himself, Austen was shocked to hear this. He decided he wanted to do something about it.

After a lot of googling, Austen discovered tea bars. He decided to launch his own, specifically catering to people with autism alongside other disabilities.

“Austen decided that he wanted to employ all the autistic people who didn’t have a job.” Said Simon.

“People with learning difficulties find it hard to switch jobs. It is the social aspect, only 16 percent of people living with autism have full time employment.” He continued.

Initially Simon was hesitant about Austen’s scheme.

“For a while I was like, ‘let’s do this when you are older.’ But then I thought when you’re a kid you have a lot less restrictions, if that’s what he wants to do, then why can’t he do it now?”

The pair set to work in making Austen’s dream a reality. To start with, Simon registered the business as a community interest company. Next on the agenda was to come up with a way to finance the project so the pair decided to launch a GoFundMe campaign.

Simon said he chose GoFundMe as he knew it was a way for communities to come together to support projects and causes in their area.

“Because it’s a community business I was hoping that people would want to get behind it and donate.” Simon said.

“The whole point of this whole thing is to bring the community together and to fight the stigma surrounding disability.

“People like us are left on the outside of the community all the time, we are always left out of the conversation.

“I wanted to do this so that people like us will no longer feel left out.”

Simon and Austen plan for the tea bar to be a safe place for people with all abilities to come to.

“We want the tea bar to be designed and fully adapted to welcome everyone including people with mobility issues, autism and other disabilities.

“We will be a hub in society, a place for support groups, date nights… every night there will be something different.”

The pair have plans to train all staff in sign language and plan to have each member of staff make their own blend of tea. The tea will then be sold in the tea room and they will get 10 percent of the profits.

Ultimately, the father and son see their project going beyond a tea room.

“We plan to employ 20 people initially and then open more shops.

“Eventually we are hoping to sell the teas as a range in supermarkets. We want to put a pot of money aside for all our employees so that they can pursue their own individual dreams.

“It’s become our obsession, if we are going to do this we are going to do it properly.”

Since launching their GoFundMe campaign, Austen has appeared on Heart Radio and in a number of news articles. They have also launched their own website where they update supporters on their progress.

For Austen, his dream is simple:  “I like selling tea and giving people tea, so that’s what I am going to do”

We asked Austen and Simon what their top tips for crowdfunding are:

Judge less

“We live in a world where we are so busy that it’s easy for people to forget to consider other people’s needs. In a work environment this is amplified. Too often employers are looking for an employee who can fit into a box. People with additional needs don’t always fit into boxes, but it doesn’t mean they can’t perform and well! With our campaign we aim to address this.”

Listen more

“By listening to people, your employees and being more considerate to their needs you can create an amazing and diverse workforce. By listening to people we were able to tailor our campaign to suit those needs.”

Be kind

“The world can always do with more kindness.”

The post Meet Austen appeared first on GoFundMe (IE).

Roy’s expectations for himself, however, were always high. Celaire went from Hackney’s notorious Holly Street (he describes it as a “sink estate’) to being offered a place at one of the best universities in the world. Along the way, he stacked shelves in a supermarket and slept on a bench after being made homeless by his mother as a teenager.

While Roy was delighted to be given a place at Oxford, there was one problem: he didn’t have the money to fund his place – and he’d just been turned down for a loan.

That’s where GoFundMe crowdfunding came in.

“I sat there and thought ‘what am I going to do?’ I put the shutters in the office down, called my sister and she told me: ‘you’ll get the money.’

“I was like ‘Really? How.’”

“People were saying I should do a GoFundMe page.” And that’s how it began.

But back in August 2018 Roy had 14 days to make his target – and it wasn’t going well.

“At first it was a little bit slow. People were surprised to see me, as a black man, going to Oxford. One person asked ‘oh do you mean the polytechnic [Oxford Brookes]?’

“Someone else asked ‘don’t you need to have good grades to go to Oxford?’ I was like ‘I do!’. I worked at Waitrose stacking shelves and people thought I did that full time.”

Like many GoFundMe users, Roy was worried about reaching his goal: “I was thinking ‘imagine if i don’t make the money. It’s embarrassing. I didn’t think people would help me or want to fund me. I already have a masters.”

“After a few days I was like ‘I need to join Twitter’. I went online and starting tweeting so many people.” Among the people Roy contacted was Mary Beard, who ended up donating to the page, and the rapper Akala, who shared it with his 200,000 followers.

In the end, Roy thinks he made his target because his story touched people. Now he’s nearly finished his MSc in anthropology, and his story is only just beginning.

“I’m proud of my background. A guy from my school messaged me on Facebook and said he’d seem my story and it inspired him. He was saying it was shocking.

“When I think about it, it is. I think ‘OMG, I grew up in a council estate and I got into Oxford.’ It still hasn’t really sunk in.”

Inspired by Roy? Here are his top fundraising tips.

1. Feel the fear, and do it anyway

“What do you have to lose? Just try.”

2. Use social media

Be proactive and try to contact different people, using social media.

3. Ask people to share rather than donate

I was mostly asking people to share it, rather than donate – which worked well and made people think they were not obligated.

4. Know what’s at stake

For me, because of everything I’d gone through I knew I had to get to Oxford no matter what. I was going to do anything I could. I wasn’t going to stop. Don’t give up, and even if you’re not successful the first time, you don’t have to rely on Plan A. Had I gone to Oxford in 2017 when I actually got in, I would have been in so much debt

The post Meet Roy appeared first on GoFundMe (IE).

By day, you would find Stephen working 15-hour days to get by. But by night, he would be rapping in local music venues, telling stories of life at the coalface of the gritty northern city he calls home.

Everything changed when Hull was named City of Culture in 2017 and Stephen’s company became a sponsor. His boss lent him a lorry and some audio equipment so that he could bring to life his long-harboured dream for a ‘Beats Bus’ – a mobile recording studio that offers hip hop workshops to deprived primary schools.

“I just wanted to give these kids the step up in life I never had. I did an air punch when they told me.”

The Beats Bus was an instant hit. Stephen and his team handpicked 12 talented children to mentor for three months, helping them write, record and perform their own songs at local festivals.

“I met a boy called Harvey who reminded me of myself. He was being bullied, getting himself into trouble and he had a really bad speech impediment. Since joining the Beats Bus crew, his school life has improved and his stutter is gone. He’s still really involved today.”

But it soon became apparent that without funding, Stephen would have to call time on a project that had sky-rocketed the self-confidence of over 200 children. That’s where GoFundMe came in.

Stephen’s initial goal was for £20,000 to pay for equipment and maintenance costs. But, like many GoFundMe users, he worried he would fall short.

“I knew it was a brilliant project but I needed the support to be able to deliver it. The first time I’d tried crowdfunding elsewhere, I got £60, so I was definitely worried that we wouldn’t get enough.”

Happily, donations immediately shot up by more than £5,000.

Bafta-nominated director Sean McAllister had made a stirring film about the Beats Bus, A Northern Soul, after a chance meeting with Stephen at a gig. It launched at the 2018 Sheffield Documentary Festival to 1,200 people, along with a link to Stephen’s GoFundMe page.

His target was smashed by the end of that year. Stephen quit his job, registered the Beats Bus as a social enterprise and now works on it full-time.

To date, nearly 800 people have donated to Stephen’s GoFundMe page. His new goal of £50,000 is to support the delivery of workshops. He is fast approaching that target, thanks partly to Ronson’s high-profile support.

In June 2020, the DJ spotted a tweet about the Beats Bus after the catchy name stood out to him. He decided to donate £1,000 and promote it in a heartfelt video shared with his half a million followers. Stephen and his team were thrilled.

“It’s absolutely mad! We’re so blessed and humbled. It’s great to be acknowledged by such an acclaimed producer.”

Coronavirus might have put the brakes on the Beats Bus but Stephen is ready to reignite the engine as soon as social distancing restrictions relax.

“We’ve been working from home, running weekly online workshops and focusing on getting the kids’ music out there. We have a new recruit, 9-year-old MC Harry, who’s doing some really exciting things.”

The Beats Bus crew recently launched their own record label, Beats Bus Records, to get their young artists on music streaming platforms.

“One of our kids just had their first single on Spotify. They sent me a video of everybody jumping around the house with joy. It was such a proud moment.”

Over the past year, Stephen has been working with the No More Knives campaign to take culture and creativity to areas affected by knife crime.

He has also joined forces with a local theatre company to put on a play, called There Should Be Unicorns, about the story of hip hop in Hull. It hopes to launch next year.

Stephen is hoping to inspire the Beats Bus kids by taking them to see the Hamilton musical, which features rap and hip hop music, when the theatre reopens after lockdown.

He doesn’t believe any of this would have been possible without crowdfunding.

“I’m so thankful for every GoFundMe donation. To have to stop all the great work we’d been doing would have been devastating.

“During City of Culture, so many things rolled into town for a few days then disappeared. It left a lot of people thinking ‘Oh, right, so what now?’.

“I’ve fulfilled my Beats Bus dream but my new dream is to keep on making it bigger and better!”

We asked Stephen to share some of his top fundraising tips:

Be descriptive

Be honest about what your project is. Make sure everybody knows what you want to do with their money, and keep your focus.

Promote it properly

Come up with a marketing strategy before you launch your GoFundMe page. If you make a link only to leave it sitting there, you won’t get anywhere. Get the word out to the right people – including celebrities!

Be professional

Write a detailed cover letter to send to potential donors or partners, explaining everything you are doing and why. Spend some time making it look and sound professional, so that people will take you seriously.

Post regular updates

Every time you update your GoFundMe page, your donors are notified, which reminds them that you’re still going and encourages further donations. People love to see how your project is progressing. Our Beats Bus YouTube channel is a great way to maintain interest.

Express your gratitude

I’ve tried to say thank you to every single person who has donated to our GoFundMe.

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