RELATED ITEMS: COOKIE DOUGH $1 BEEF STICKS $2 BEEF JERKY
How to Plan a Boy Scout Troop Chili Supper Fundraiser
Troop# 46 in New Jersey hosted their 14th, Troop# 315 in Illinois their 25th, Troop# 90 their 39th, & Troop# 216 their 40th Annual Chili Supper, and the list goes on.
Why do so many Troops have a 20+ year tradition of hosting an Annual Chili Supper Fundraiser?
According to Chad Yeager, a Boy Scouts of America commissioner, after prizes local Troops make 28-30% profit on Popcorn Sales.
While BSA dues are only $66 annually, this doesn’t include the cost of uniforms, gear, backpack, supplies, equipment replacement, Summer Camp, Campouts, etc. Christa Nonemakker estimates the total annual cost to be $600-$1,000 depending on where you are, and what events your Troop participate in.
At 30% profit, it would be hard to sell enough popcorn to earn that cost. The cost of most items on the Trail’s End online store are $30+, making a sale increasingly difficult for Scouts.
These are some reasons why many Boy Scout Troops have opted to do their own fundraiser. On their own, they can choose to offer more affordable options. Once they’ve done this, they immediately find customers are more receptive to supportive Scouts in uniform. I mean who doesn’t like being told YES? The local Troop is also happy to find out how quickly the sales add up when they get to keep 100% of the Profit from their project. For their Troop fundraiser they often sell cookie dough, $1 beef sticks, $2 beef jerky. Others choose to host an event like a Pork Butt sale, Spaghetti Dinner, or an Annual Chili Supper!
From our research here’s a few things we commonly found Troops do for their Chili Supper:
- Almost all provide an all you can eat chili supper with tickets presold to the event for between $5 and $8 a piece.
- About half of the troop’s offered a reduced or free rate for children 5 and under.
- Many troops offer ticket sales a the door on the date of the event for $2-4 over the pre-sold ticket price.
- Almost all of the events were held at churches or a community center for little or no cost. These venues often have the facilities necessary to prepare a meal of this size and host 100+ diners at any given time. If you don’t already have a relationship with your church, you probably have a Troop Leader that’s active in a local church willing to help. In fact, it may be the same church you already hold your regular Troop meetings at. Churches are supportive of the values, and qualities the Scout Oath & Law promote. Talk to your Minister or Pastor and see if they would be willing to let you have a chili supper one night on a day of his/her choosing.
In conclusion, most troops that have done Chili Suppers, continue to host them for many years. From our research, this isn’t done out of tradition, rather for these reasons…
- Ability to raise funds consistently
- Easily organized by leader with little to no experience (find a site & event date, print out tickets, set a goal per scout for tickets sold, distribute tickets, & have a money turn-in day)
- Tickets sell easily (whether or not they plan to attend)
- Simple to cook. The meal doesn’t require a chef to prepare, or a rocket scientist to assemble the ingredients (hamburger, unions, bell pepper, beans, stewed tomatoes, water, & spices)
- No confusion, delays, or resentment from the community. A homecooked meal for less than $10, and support the Boy Scouts. That’s easy to understand, and a win-win proposition for everyone involved.
For these reasons alone, all Troops should consider a Chili Supper when discussing the need for fundraising due to either the increasing costs of being a scout, or the need for Summer Camp scholarships for less fortunate members.
Good luck and Happy Scouting!
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How to Plan a Boy Scout Troop Chili Supper Fundraiser
Troop# 46 in New Jersey hosted their 14th, Troop# 315 in Illinois their 25th, Troop# 90 their 39th, & Troop# 216 their 40th Annual Chili Supper, and the list goes on.
Why do so many Troops have a 20+ year tradition of hosting an Annual Chili Supper Fundraiser?
According to Chad Yeager, a Boy Scouts of America commissioner, after prizes local Troops make 28-30% profit on Popcorn Sales.
While BSA dues are only $66 annually, this doesn’t include the cost of uniforms, gear, backpack, supplies, equipment replacement, Summer Camp, Campouts, etc. Christa Nonemakker estimates the total annual cost to be $600-$1,000 depending on where you are, and what events your Troop participate in.
At 30% profit, it would be hard to sell enough popcorn to earn that cost. The cost of most items on the Trail’s End online store are $30+, making a sale increasingly difficult for Scouts.
These are some reasons why many Boy Scout Troops have opted to do their own fundraiser. On their own, they can choose to offer more affordable options. Once they’ve done this, they immediately find customers are more receptive to supportive Scouts in uniform. I mean who doesn’t like being told YES? The local Troop is also happy to find out how quickly the sales add up when they get to keep 100% of the Profit from their project. For their Troop fundraiser they often sell cookie dough, $1 beef sticks, $2 beef jerky. Others choose to host an event like a Pork Butt sale, Spaghetti Dinner, or an Annual Chili Supper!
From our research here’s a few things we commonly found Troops do for their Chili Supper:
- Almost all provide an all you can eat chili supper with tickets presold to the event for between $5 and $8 a piece.
- About half of the troop’s offered a reduced or free rate for children 5 and under.
- Many troops offer ticket sales a the door on the date of the event for $2-4 over the pre-sold ticket price.
- Almost all of the events were held at churches or a community center for little or no cost. These venues often have the facilities necessary to prepare a meal of this size and host 100+ diners at any given time. If you don’t already have a relationship with your church, you probably have a Troop Leader that’s active in a local church willing to help. In fact, it may be the same church you already hold your regular Troop meetings at. Churches are supportive of the values, and qualities the Scout Oath & Law promote. Talk to your Minister or Pastor and see if they would be willing to let you have a chili supper one night on a day of his/her choosing.
In conclusion, most troops that have done Chili Suppers, continue to host them for many years. From our research, this isn’t done out of tradition, rather for these reasons…
- Ability to raise funds consistently
- Easily organized by leader with little to no experience (find a site & event date, print out tickets, set a goal per scout for tickets sold, distribute tickets, & have a money turn-in day)
- Tickets sell easily (whether or not they plan to attend)
- Simple to cook. The meal doesn’t require a chef to prepare, or a rocket scientist to assemble the ingredients (hamburger, unions, bell pepper, beans, stewed tomatoes, water, & spices)
- No confusion, delays, or resentment from the community. A homecooked meal for less than $10, and support the Boy Scouts. That’s easy to understand, and a win-win proposition for everyone involved.
For these reasons alone, all Troops should consider a Chili Supper when discussing the need for fundraising due to either the increasing costs of being a scout, or the need for Summer Camp scholarships for less fortunate members.
Good luck and Happy Scouting!