5 Creative Ways to Raise Money for Your Adoption

At the beginning of 2017, the U.S. Department of Agriculture released a report estimating the cost of raising a child born in 2015. According to the report, it costs a middle-income family roughly $12,300 to $14,000 a year to raise a child. For a family planning to adopt a child, they can expect to add on quite a bit extra in expenses — before the child has even arrived.
The cost of adoption is high. It can be financially challenging for some adoptive families to fund their adoption. But don’t let the cost of adoption dissuade you from choosing this method of growing your family. Here is a list of some creative fundraising ideas that can help offset some adoption costs.

Have a Garage Sale

You will need to make space for your new addition, so this is a great excuse to declutter your house and sell what you can. Start with Craigslist or EBay for selling larger items, like appliances and exercise equipment. Smaller items can be sold on EBay also, as well as at a garage sale, or on a local swap-and-shop site (such as through Facebook). Check consignment shops for selling name-brand clothing.

Get Personal

Send a personal fundraising letter to family, friends, co-workers, and fellow church parishioners, explaining your story and goals. Set up a webpage to collect online donations (such as YouCaring or GoFundMe), and explain the procedure in the letter. Answer potential “how to help” questions in the letter. Start a blog to keep everyone posted on your journey.

Sell Your Hobby

Take your hobby or talent and turn it into a small business. Etsy is a well-known website for selling handmade items. If you are in education, create your own worksheets or lesson plans, and sell them on Teachers Pay Teachers. If your hobby is more of a service, like cooking, photography or web design, consider giving lessons to others.

Host a Tournament

While these events take more preparation, they have the potential to earn a lot of money for your adoption fund. There are many options — 5k walk/run, golf tournament, softball tournament, dodgeball tournament. Consider asking local businesses for food and drink donations during the event. Create a t-shirt to commemorate the event, and include it in the participants’ registration packet.

Get Cooking

Hosting a benefit meal is a great way to raise money. This doesn’t have to be anything extravagant. Keep the food simple and easy to cook in bulk — pancakes, spaghetti, chili, hot dogs, hamburgers. Enlist friends and family to help cook and serve. Another successful food fundraiser is a bake sale. Again, ask friends and family to contribute baked good (homemade or store-bought), and sell them for $1 apiece.